Let's try this again
by Mamaverd
Summary: The shift after the blackout was going to be awkward to say the least. This is my version of what should have happened...
1. Chapter 1   Fishing for information

Disclaimer: I do not own anything Rookie Blue. I am however grateful for those who were amazing enough to bring it into our lives.

A/N: This takes place after the blackout. Some lines will be familiar. Decided to do shorter chapters this time, maybe updating will be more often and not so daunting a task in my crazy life. My first Sam/Andy fan fiction, hope you enjoy.

**Chapter 1-Fishing for information**

**Sam's POV**

Sam parked his truck and made his way to the front doors of 15th Division. A coffee cup in each hand, he was anxious to see Andy and talk to her about the night of the blackout. It had been three days since their "almost" night, and it was all he could think about for those three days. He had no idea what freaked her out or what made her decide to leave, he was only certain of one thing, he had never felt anything like that before….for anyone. He just needed to talk to her and see if there was any reciprocation. He felt like there was, but she was not quite herself after shooting that suspect. In any event, this was more than a crush now. He had to talk to her, then he would deal with the Luke issue, the TO/rookie issue, the making her his wife issue….. He laughed out loud. _Shut up Sammy, one hurdle at a time. _He smiled to himself as he saw Noelle approach him.

"You shouldn't have." She grinned as she pretended to reach for a coffee.

"I didn't." he replied

"Ouch. Who's the lucky girl?"

"Jerry."

"I don't know, a bounce in your step, twinkle in your eye….if I didn't know any better, I would swear you were in love."

Sam stopped in his tracks, Noelle continued into the building.

_Love…..Noooooo, what's she talking about? _

Sam walked straight to the squad room searching desperately for Andy and hoping not to run into anyone else lest he lose his nerve. Luck was not on his side as he saw Luke of all people. His half hearted attempt to avoid his line of vision was a failure as the detective walked right towards him.

"Hey Swarek, we need to talk?"

"Is this about McNally?"

"I need your help."

Sam squinted at him in disbelief. _Luke Callaghan is the last person he would ever want to help…ever._

"Today's her first shift back since the shooting, I'm afraid it will be a little weird for her."

"So?"

"So, I am taking her to my fishing cabin on Simco after shift. It's an hour and a half drive and I don't want her to be delayed."

"Fishing cabin? McNally doesn't really strike me as the fishing type."

"Sammy, a fishing cabin has very little to do with actually fishing. Besides, it was her idea."

Sam felt his heart sink. _How could this be? Yeah, Luke is her boyfriend, but after what happened, how could she? _This was a reality he was not ready to face. He tried his best to keep his "poker face".

"Yeah, no problem. I won't get in your way."

"Thanks." With that Luke walked away. Sam would have also except he felt his legs go numb. This was not exactly how he expected this morning to go. _What an ass I am! I'm acting like a loves struck teenager. What the hell was I thinking?_

He took a deep breath and with a sigh walked over to the garbage to dump her coffee. He made his way to the locker room without any further conversation, changed into a t-shirt and uniform pants and walked into parade. He was off duty today and would be participating in retraining exercises with the other senior uniformed officers. If he could just avoid McNally during parade, she would be off to community service detail and he could try to figure out how to disregard this chapter of his life. When he woke this morning, all he could think about was talking to her, finally getting out what he didn't realize he'd been holding back for so long. He new he would have to get to work a little early just to see her before they went their separate ways today.

In light of his conversation with Luke, however, retraining couldn't have been planned better. The last thing he wanted right now was to be trapped in a squad car for ten hours with her.

He made small talk with Noelle and then as if on cue, there she was. He glanced over and didn't acknowledge the small wave she gave him. She looked uncomfortable. Not that it was his concern. Fortunately, Best walked in and gave him a distraction. After parade was over, Sam immediately went to congratulate his old friend on his new promotion. Then as fast as he could, he was getting the hell out of there. It would seem, that today was not his day as he heard Andy right on his heels.

"Sam, look I know we haven't seen each other since the other….listen, I really think we should talk."

"Andy, it's cool. It was what it was, okay?"

"What do you mean it was what it was?"

If he didn't know otherwise, he could have sworn that there was something in her eyes. _Yeah, Most likely regret._ He couldn't get into this,…. Here…now. This relationship would have been a no-no, but the non relationship issue, he could not bring attention to that either. Besides, she made her decision.

"Look, I know it's your specialty, but let's try not to over think this one." He looked her right in the eyes and gave her a slight smile before walking away. Only this time he saw something else, it wasn't regret, it look liked hurt.

**Andy's POV**

Andy had been so nervous to come to work today. Actually, she wasn't sure if it was nerves or anxiety or embarrassment. Any way you slice it, she was at least prepared for awkward. It had been a fairly quiet three days off. Luke and she had grabbed a quick dinner last night, he being so busy with the pedophile case. Mostly, she laid low at home. Thinking or thinking about her lack of thinking.

_First of all, what was I thinking going to his house that night? What did I expect him to do? He's my TO. Like I haven't been enough trouble for him. And then what do I do? Kiss him? Way to go Andy, things weren't complicated enough. Oh God, but those kisses, and his hands and that chest…Get a grip Andy._

Andy couldn't help but smile at the memory and feel her cheeks get warm at the thought of Sam. She pulled herself together just as she walked into parade. He was like a magnet to her. She immediately caught his gaze and gave an awkward, hardly noticable wave. No reaction from Sam. He was sitting on a table talking to Noelle. You would have thought he had never met her before. Andy walked over to Traci and the other rookies. They would be doing community service at the local high schools while the veteran officers participated in retraining activities. Except for Gail who drew the long straw, as usual, and got to help Sgt. Best. Frank Best, newly promoted to Staff Sergeant walked into parade to address the group before shift.

Andy couldn't stop staring at Sam, and she couldn't help but think that something was definitely off. There were a million reasons why he might be pissed. She did kiss him, then she did leave him. Was he mad that she came to him or mad that she didn't stay? She had to believe it was the latter. She had never felt what she felt with him, that night. Not with Luke, not with anyone. She felt so safe in his arms, yet scared to death at the feelings that were rising to the surface. Thank God the lights came on so clearer heads could prevail. The only problem now was that she didn't want him clear of her head. If she could only get him alone to talk to him and see if maybe it was worth taking a chance. If she learned anything at all from this debacle, it was that she shouldn't be with Luke. Even if Sam rejected her, she couldn't stay in a passionless, non committed relationship where obviously she would never come first. As Best was concluding parade she gave one last glance over to Sam who was smiling at something Noelle said. Their eyes met for a second and the smile disappeared from his face. There was no way she could go on patrol not knowing exactly what was wrong. She was determined to catch up with him as he seemed to run from the parade room.

"Sam , look I know we haven't seen each other since the other...listen, I really think we should talk."

"Andy, it's cool. It was what it was, okay."

"What do you mean it was what it was?

She hoped her voice wasn't showing what her heart was feeling after his dismissal.

"Look, I know it's your specialty, but let's try not to over think this one." He gave a half smile and walked past her.

Any clarity she needed about that first comment certainly were cemented with that crack. It felt like she had stopped breathing. She was speechless, hurt and truly speechless. How could she have read things so wrong? She knew that there was something there. The night at the Penny, they would have kissed. She knew it. It wasn't that she didn't want to that night, she just figured that she had already had a rough start, starting something with her TO would have been tantamount to handing in her badge. She saw how he looked at her sometimes and knew that she looked at him in ways that were inappropriate for their working relationship, let alone that she was involved with someone.

"Hey you." she was suddenly jostled from her thoughts by non other than Luke.

"Hey." she attempted a smile

"So, we're all set for tonight." he said as he handed her a coffee.

"Ya know, um, Luke, I don't really know if tonight..."

"No, it's okay, I already spoke to Swarek."

"You did." the words coming out as almost a whisper.

"It's all fine. As far as he's concerned, your all mine."

"Great,... that's great." was about all she could muster as he walked away.

She glanced in the direction of where Sam had gone and there he was. One more look and he was gone again. She felt sick. _No wonder he's avoiding me. This is going to be a very long day. _She sighed as she went to go meet Chris at the squad car.


	2. Chapter 2 Retrain Showdown

Chapter 2-Retrain showdown

Andy and Chris were scheduled to speak at a local high school as part of career day. Unfortunately, when they got there, they found out that the dates had been mixed up. After Andy got Chris to get over his disappointment, they started to head in the direction of the precinct. In a nearby alley, they came across a badly beaten man. The victim had been assaulted and left bleeding in the alley behind a local night club. He was speaking in conspiracy theories as they attempted to get a statement from him before he was taken to the hospital. Medics felt it was urgent to have him looked at so they took some quick notes and watched the ambulance drive away. They canvassed the area and spoke to the bouncer of the bar who gave them a lead on two Jamaican men.

They stopped back at the barn to speak to Detective Barber who was guiding them on how to handle the investigation. As Andy glanced through the window to where the retrain exercises were taking place she noticed that the detectives were milling around and cheering on one of their own. She questioned Detective Barber on why they were involved.

"Sammy threw down the gauntlet. Said we didn't have the stones. I think he's gonna be sorry." Andy felt a pang of nausea; she didn't think it was Sam who was going to be sorry. She made her way into the retrain room as Noelle was beating the crap out of Detective Watson. Sam was screaming his head off in support when he noticed Andy next to him.

"Hey, hi…Sam?"

"What is it McNally? I already told your boyfriend that I'm not gonna hold you back from the love shack." _Way to be mature Sam old boy. _

"It's not even like that, okay." _Yep, he's still pissed._

She avoided any further conversation and quickly retreated from the room. They spent the next hour following up a lead from the two Jamaican men, who had allibied out. Unfortunately the lead brought them to suspect another cop. Detective Derek Bibby. Chris had discussed what happened with Steve Peck, Gail's brother, and also Bibby's partner. Things got interesting when Bibby's sister came in with a story that would exonerate her brother. Andy and Chris knew they were naïve at times on the job but they weren't idiots. This whole story didn't sit right but who were they to question a senior officer? Furthermore, what would be the repercussions if they did? Andy decided that she wanted to run this by Sam. Sam was all about the job and doing things right. He would certainly not want her to be collateral damage if they ended up reporting this veteran cop. She knew, or she thought she knew, that Sam would put his feelings aside to help her, he always had. She went in search of him and found him in a quiet hallway on his cell phone.

He saw her immediately and turned away.

"You can stop avoiding me now?" He hung up the call and turned toward her.

"Avoiding you?" he asked in mock disbelief

"Yeah, running away every time that you see me. FINE, **it was what it was**, whatever, I won't over think it but you're still my training officer, right?"

He nodded. His own words coming back to bite him in the ass.

"That means I can come to you with a problem, no matter what that problem is or who that problem's with?"

"Sure, what? You and Callaghan fighting over who get's top bunk at the cabin?"

_Another dig. _She hoped that the look on her face did not show how much that stung.

"Oh, that's hilarious, I'm referring to a case Sam."

He couldn't resist her, the way she said his name, and she was so close to him he could smell her shampoo, but before he could snap himself out of the daze she came back at him.

"You know what? Screw it."

_Crap, now she really hates me. _He let out a loud sigh before heading back to the retrain room. He noticed that she was already in there, standing with Luke. _Ah, just a little visit with her "fishing" buddy. God, what the hell is wrong with me? He is her boyfriend, not that she ever gave me a chance. I so want to kick his ass. _His thoughts were interrupted by Peck's voice.

"Next up Swarek and Callaghan." Whistles erupted from the crowd as Luke suited up to be the attacker.

_Yes! Early Christmas for you Sammy boy._

Andy felt the nausea brimming again. This could not end well. Sam would be out for blood, she could see it in his eyes. Unfortunately for Luke, he had no clue what was coming his way.

Sam took Luke down early. He played with him a bit, not going for the kill. Finally, he had had enough. Luke kept coming at him with that stupid grin and all Sam could think about was the smug look on his face when he told him about that damn fishing cabin. It was all Sam could take; he started beating Luke relentlessly with his baton. The minute and a half seemed like an eternity to Andy. Fortunately, she was not the only one who noticed Sam's anger. Best finally stopped the match but not before all eyes fell on Sam. He knew he'd gone too far, but in that moment he didn't care. Beating up on Luke was not going to change anything. He might have felt better for the moment but the fact remained that Andy made her choice and it wasn't him. Sam got up, tossed his baton at Luke and walked away, but not before glaring over at Andy.

After they confronted Bibby at the bar, all facts were confirmed that he was in fact the man who assaulted their vic in the alley. Between Bibby's "how dare you mess with the brotherhood" speech and with Sam blowing her off, Andy convinced Chris that they needed to go straight to Sgt. Best. When the sergeant realized what they were insinuating, he asked for Noelle and Sam to sit in on the conversation.

Sam stood quietly in the corner, knowing full well that he had screwed up badly. As a training officer, he needed to be objective and supportive. Neither of which he had been today.

As if reading his mind Noelle asked,

"Why didn't you come to one of us?"

Sam had guilty written all over his face.

"They tried, I was…..distracted." He felt awful. Andy wouldn't even look at him. He couldn't believe that this day had turned out so horribly. Just this morning he was on cloud nine. Ever since that conversation with Callaghan he had turned into a complete ass. Right now all he wanted was a shower and a drink…..a very large drink.

Frank would get the wheels in motion as far as Internal Affairs was concerned. He would try to keep the two rookies names out of the report but at this point, he couldn't make any promises. Andy and Chris were dismissed and made their way to their respective locker rooms. They couldn't wait to hit the Penny for a drink and forget about this crazy day.

Andy grabbed her bag from her locker. Luke was planning to meet her at the Penny and they would leave for his cabin from there. The cabin. She cringed at the thought of making this trip with Luke. She should have been more adamant about not going. She sat in the quiet locker room and pondered this predicament that she found herself in. She was a smart girl but with matters of the heart she sometimes just didn't use her head. How could she go away with Luke while knowing full well that she had feelings for Sam? And Sam…., she let out a sigh. Despite his moronic behavior, she knew that she was partially responsible for Sam's actions. And despite the fact that she was so angry with him right now, she couldn't help but think about how wonderful he has been to her. He has been her teacher, a friend and a rock when everything else was spinning out of control. She also couldn't stop thinking about that night at his house. No questions asked, he let her in. He didn't reject her, he could have…..probably should have…..and now look where they are. She was so confused. Luke is sweet, kind, handsome, fun to be with. Sam…..he's sweet too. He doesn't want anyone to know it, but he is. Handsome too, actually more hot than just handsome….. and fun. She couldn't remember a time when he couldn't make her laugh over something silly. Here she had these two completely different men, yet, they had similar qualities.

However, there **were** two major differences. First, Sam was always there for her. Ok, maybe not today but otherwise….ALWAYS. Luke put work, cases before her, ALWAYS. Second, things with Luke were always nice, their sex life was good…..but that night, the night of the blackout was... amazing. They hadn't even slept together but oh boy the attraction was there. They had never kissed before but it felt like those were the lips that hers were meant to be pressed against. He had never touched her like that, but she felt so wanted in his arms. She felt butterflies from his kisses, something she had never felt before. She needed him, and she never wanted to **need **anyone. She snapped out of her daze. She glanced at her watch and decided that she would head to the Penny, maybe have a minute to herself to figure out what to do.

Fifteen minutes later Andy walked through the door to the Penny. She glanced toward the back for her friends. She saw Sam at the bar staring into his scotch and tried to quickly walk past him. Not happening. He caught a glimpse of her in the mirror behind the bar. He spun around to his left and reached out for her arm.

"Hey." _God, she was stunning._

"Hey." She tried to sound normal and attempted her best pissed off look.

"Listen, that was a brave thing you did today, reporting that Vice Squad guy. I'm sorry I didn't believe…Sorry I didn't listen to you."

"Me too." She said quietly and started to walk away.

He still held her arm "Andy."

Her eyes held his for a moment before she looked away. She took a deep breath and moved closer to him. "You were right Sam, it was what it was."

The back door to the Penny opened and in walked Luke. Sam let out a sigh.w They both glanced in his direction. He got caught talking to a couple of friends and Sam decided to go for it, all or nothing.

"I lied." He said it so softly, she wasn't sure he actually said it.

"What?"

"I lied to you…..about that night."

"Sam, what are you talking about, I don't understand."

His hand trailed down from her arm to her hand and held it. He was being totally inappropriate but he needed to touch her, to feel some reassurance. Fortunately, she didn't pull her hand away.

"Please don't go….with him."

Her eyes got wide as the gravity of what he was saying registered in her mind.

"Sam…"

"Andy, I know I have no right to ask, but please, I need to explain,…I was such an idiot,…. just please don't go."

"You ready?" It was Luke. Sam discreetly let go of her hand. The bar was crowded and loud so it would seem they were just that close to hear each other.

"Um, yeah." She was talking to Luke but still looking at Sam.

Sam tried to pull himself together and swallow the lump that was constricting his throat. "Hey, have a nice trip you guys." He turned back toward the bar.

Luke put his arm around Andy, as they headed for the exit, but not before she gave one last glance at Sam. They walked outside toward Luke's car.

"Hey, your not having second thoughts are you?" he smiled as he opened her door.

"Luke, ...I can't do this."

**This chapter didn't come out as easy as I hoped. Please let me know what you think. =**


	3. Chapter 3 Breaking up is hard to do

Chapter 3-Breaking up is hard to do

"Luke, I can't do this."

"Andy, it'll be fine. It will be good for you to get away." He smiled as he walked around to the driver's side.

She remained silent until he got in the car and went to put the key in the ignition. She put her hand on his and spoke softly.

"I don't mean the cabin."

"We could go another….wait, then what do you mean?"

"I can't do this." She motioned between the two of them.

"Andy….What's wrong, I don't understand, I thought things were good between us."

"Things **were** good. And it's not so much what's wrong, it's what's not right."

"Did I do something to upset you?"

"Luke, listen, I care about you. I have fun when I am with you…."

"But?"

"But, I needed you to be there for me and you weren't. Anyone can do the good stuff, the easy stuff but I needed you the other day and you weren't there for me."

"I'm here for you now."

"The other night, that frightened me. I was scared at how easily I pulled that trigger to protect myself." He started to interject "Just hear me out. In the academy they prepare us for life and death situations. Even then, I prayed I never had to take someone's life, no matter what the circumstances were. That sicko, hurting those girls, I still didn't want to hurt him, but when push came to shove, I didn't hesitate. Afterward, all I could think about was that someone was dead because of me. All you could think about is what a great case. I needed you that night. If you knew me, like you should after all these months, you would have been able to read that, but you chose to work. I understand your dedication to the job. I'm dedicated too but I would have made you come first."

"Andy, I'm sorry. I promise, I'll try to be more sensitive to your feelings next time."

"This isn't the first time. The whole fiasco with Benny. You were on auto pilot, all you saw was solving the case and you didn't care what got in your way. I'm sorry, no matter what you say, I am not built like that."

He just stared at her with those blue eyes and his lips pressed together. She felt slightly guilty. I mean she was telling him the truth. Ok, so maybe she was leaving out the whole "_I'm also hot for my training officer" _part, but that was taboo right now and she certainly wasn't willing to put her job and Sam's in jeopardy till she talked to him. The bottom line still remained. She wasn't happy with Luke. It didn't matter what Sam had to say, she couldn't keep the charade up any longer.

Finally he spoke, "I don't know what to say. I mean…I think there is more to this than you are letting on but you seem like you've made your decision."

"I have. I'm sorry Luke, that we weren't for each other what you hoped we could be." She started to get out of the car.

"Andy, wait, you still need a ride home." He sounded half sincere.

"That's ok. I think I 'm gonna just walk."

With that, he sped out of the Penny parking lot.

Andy let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding. _Now what?_

She knew Sam was still inside, his truck parked a few yards from where she stood. She was so tempted to go back in there but in light of what just happened it didn't seem prudent. She slung her bag over her shoulder and started walking toward home.

Meanwhile Sam was at the bar drowning himself in yet another scotch. She left. He couldn't believe it. Ok, he could believe it. He'd been believing it for months now. He had no choice. How could he have been so wrong though? He was a trained investigator. He knew how she looked at him. He certainly knew there was no way he had been hiding what he felt. Who was he kidding? Oliver had mentioned something, Noelle too, geez even Monica caught on and she had seen him and Andy together for about 30 seconds.

He was jolted from his stupor by a man's voice as they sat down on the stool next to him.

"He Sir, how's it going?"

"Fine, Diaz, how about yourself?"

"I've had better days. Gail hates me. You know, the whole Bibby mess, he's her brother's partner."

"Yeah, I know. You guys did the right thing, though. I know it might not feel like it now with the spotlight on you, but you did."

"Andy asked me today if I would rather do the right thing or be liked? I'm sort of questioning that reasoning right about now. You know when I was going through the academy…."

"Don't!"

"Sorry, I'll leave you alone if…."

"No Diaz, **don't **second guess yourself. You followed your instincts today and you were right. Bibby is an asshole. He thought he was above the law and could do whatever he wanted and get away with it. His type gives us all a bad name. We need people to trust us in order for us to do our job effectively.….but,…. I am sorry."

"For what?"

"Sorry I wasn't there to help you guys. I was a little….off today."

"You **were** a bit intense during retraining. I thought you were gonna kill Detective Callaghan." He gave a half smile.

"Wasn't looking to kill, just looking to rip off his Superman cape." He smirked.

"Huh?...oh, I guess you're not a big fan of his."

"I think he's an idiot. A great detective, but still an idiot."

Sam knew he should shut up. He was bordering on dangerous territory. Animosity towards his beautiful partner's boyfriend should not be voiced aloud. Especially not to another rookie who happens to be one of her closest friends.

"I'm not a big fan of his either to tell you the truth, just between you and me, Sir."

"Oh, no?"

"I love Andy, she's like a sister to me. I'm just tired of seeing her disappointed, and what's funny is she doesn't even seem herself when she's with him, did you ever notice that?"

"I really don't pay attention to my partner's love life Diaz." _Liar, Liar and of course I noticed._

"I mean, even today, she just looked unhappy. I asked her about going to Luke's fishing cabin, figuring that would be a cool thing to do with her boyfriend….only she looked like she was going to get teeth pulled instead. I don't know, I just think there is something not right…Listen to me, my girlfriend hates me right now and I'm talking about Andy's love life."

"I am sure she doesn't hate you. Give it time. Diaz, you may be in the hot seat right now but in a couple of days, this whole Bibby fiasco will be old news... And Diaz, forget what that jackass, Steve Peck, said."

"You heard that?"

He raised an eyebrow as he stood to leave, "We'll watch your back."

"Night sir."

As Sam reached his truck he looked around the parking lot for Andy. Of course she was no where to be found, neither was Luke's car. What the hell was he thinking, blurting out that drabble as she's leaving with her boyfriend for the love shack? He got in his truck and headed home. He wanted to text her or call her and claim temporary insanity..._Yeah right, insanely in love with your partner, old boy_.

As he stripped down to his boxers and his head hit the pillow his mind was filled with thoughts of Andy McNally. Not his usual fantasy of sweeping her off her feet and her falling madly in love with him. Not of the night of the blackout where he held her in his arms and kissed her as if she was only his. No these thoughts were much different. Tomorrow he would be partnered with her again. He would spend ten hours in a car with her again and finally have to acknowledge that she made her choice and it wasn't him...again. It was time to move on. He thought this morning was gonna be awkward. Today was a walk in the park compared to tomorrow.

**So much for shorter chapters updating more often. Sorry. :) Please let me know what you think, I love all of the alerts and reviews.**


	4. Chapter 4 Did she or didn't she?

Chapter 4-Did she or didn't she

Sam woke up before his alarm and stared at the ceiling. Today was going to be interesting to say the least. He wasn't sure how to act toward Andy. He was so frustrated with the whole situation. Normally, he would just move on. Normally…..he didn't have this problem. He knew women were attracted to him. He never usually had any problem in the dating department. Until now. Ok, not really fair to say since he never actually asked her out on one but this was definitely new ground for him in every aspect. They had a tumultuous start to say the least but the past four months, and he would admit this to no one, were the best of his life. He loved his job, but these past few months, just knowing he would be with her, see her smile, hear that laugh, it just made it that much better. Yes, he would still be with her on patrol, still see that beautiful smile, hear that sweet laugh at his dumb jokes, smell that vanilla shampoo, only today one thing would be missing…the hope of something more. He put it out there, ok, maybe not exactly how he felt but he did let her know there was something there. She walked away with that blonde blue eyed stiff to go to that freakin cabin. Sam let out a deep sigh as he finally dragged himself into the shower.

Andy woke up with a spring in her step. She felt like she was 20 lbs lighter now that the monkey was off her back. She couldn't wait to see Sam, to hear what he had to explain, to share with him what had been building up over the past few months. Hopefully she would be able to avoid any uncomfortable moments with Luke and just get to patrol. She practically skipped into the locker room to change. There were a few people scattered around but none she knew that well. Finally as she finished buttoning up her uniform, Traci walked in.

"So, how was sexy time at the cabin?"

"Huh,… oh, I didn't go." She admitted nonchalantly

"What? Why? What happened? I thought you finally gave in." her eyes wide with shock

"We broke up." She said plainly.

"What? When?"

"Last night…..Listen, Trace, I can't talk about this now. We'll talk about it later."

"How about tonight? We'll go to the Penny?" half asking half telling

Andy thought about Sam and getting a chance to talk with him.

"Maybe. I'll let you know later. We better get to parade."

The women walked into the parade room. Sam was seated on a table in his usual corner. They made eye contact for a split second, she went to flash him a small smile but he turned away immediately. For a second she thought that maybe he didn't see her but then of course it registered in her brain.

O_h crap, he thinks I went._

It was all she could do to stop herself from yelling across the room "I didn't go". Of course she would never dare, especially that she was now aware of Luke standing a few feet from where she and Traci were seated. She did a double take when she saw him and tried to give him a small smile. It was not returned. He gave a nod of acknowledgement and as soon as Sergeant Best was finished, he bolted to his office. The exchange which was barely noticeable to anyone else was not lost on Sam.

Andy was paired with Sam, as usual, and ran to grab their equipment bag. Over the past few months they had fallen into a very comfortable partnership. She knew what was expected and was eager for his approval. Sam knew she had the makings of a fantastic cop and tried to be as constructive in his criticisms as possible. She grabbed coffee for both of them and started walking across the parking lot to their squad car. Unfortunately, not before running into Luke.

"Andy."

"Yeah,... hey Luke, how are you?"

"How do you think I am? My girlfriend broke up with me, out of the blue." He was angry

"It wasn't out of the blue, if you really took the time to notice. You know Luke,….I've spent my whole life being disappointed and having to deal with the fact that the people who are supposed to care about me never seem to be there when I need them. My mom, then my dad, other guys I've dated and then you. I'm tired of it."

Thoughts of Sam popped into her head, her faithful supporter, he was always there for her. She had to get her feelings out in the open and finally be honest with herself. Luke continued to stare at her not uttering a word.

"You always made work take priority over me, well for once, **I** have decided to put **me** first." And with that she walked away.

Sam saw the exchange between the two and would have given a million dollars to hear what was said. Maybe, Andy would share it with him, then again, he wasn't really sure that he wanted to hear it.

The morning was fairly quiet. They only spoke with regards to work. No small talk, no banter, no silliness and most importantly, neither one acknowledging the elephant in the room, or the car in this moment. Andy couldn't take the silence anymore.

"So, how are you?"

"Fine."

"Did you want to talk?"

"Nope."

"I know that you are mad at me right now…."

"Nope."

"Sam, listen….about last night…..I …." She tried to stumble out before he cut her off.

"Hey McNally, don't sweat it, I probably had a little too much to drink and….."

"Pull over the car!" She said adamantly

"Excuse me?"

"Over there, pull over, Sam, I am not kidding." She pointed to a quiet side street.

He pulled over and shut the ignition his eyes looking anywhere but her. Andy unhooked her seatbelt and turned toward him.

"Sam, listen, I am trying to talk to you but so far all I've gotten is a fine and two nopes. Just hear me out."

"McNally, we don't have time for this." He went to start the car again but she grabbed his hand. He looked at her, for the first time, afraid she would be able to glance into his soul and possibly see the pain behind his eyes. Instead she said three words to him that he would never forget.

"I didn't go."

Before the words could actually register in his mind, she grabbed his vest and pulled him toward her and in an instant her lips were on his, a soft gentle kiss, it was a full second before he responded. When she pulled away, she looked right into his eyes. She wasnt sure exactly what it was she was looking for..., want, need, admiration,... love. What she saw couldn't be put into words. She wanted to kiss him again, actually she wanted to take advantage of him right in the back seat of the car. It took all she could muster to stop to herself from kissing him, from telling him all that she hadn't realized was bottled up inside. She would, when they got a chance to be alone. Really alone and not in a patrol car when they were supposed to be working. She smiled and sat back in her seat. He was stunned, speechless, amazed at her boldness and quite frankly, completely turned on.

He tried to get out a coherent thought without sounding like an idiot.

"Andy, what the hell was that?" he said in disbelief

"That was me, letting you know, that I'm in."

"Really? In for what? An affair? What about your boyfriend?"

"Oh ...um, we broke up." She still didn't look at him and thank God, because he was grinning from ear to ear at this turn of events.

Suddenly the radio crackled to life. "All units in the vicinity of Dulles and Bailey, we have a multi vehicle accident. EMS is on the way."

Andy grabbed the receiver to respond but not before Sam grabbed her hand and said "This conversation is so not finished."

She clicked the microphone, "1505 responding"

Sam pulled away from the curb as Andy buckled back in.

"Of course not, Sam, we haven't even started."


	5. Chapter 5 Having some faith

**A/N Hello to my fan fiction friends. Thank you to all who read and review. The alerts make my day. Wanted this to be all about Sam and Andy but it kind of got away from me, like it had a mind of its own. I Promise that the next chapter is going to be all them. Enjoy.**

Chapter 5 - Have some faith

Shaw and Epstein, Peck and Diaz were the first on the scene. The accident involved two vehicles that over shot a radar sting that the two pairs were conducting. The accident was not as serious as Sam and Andy had anticipated, however, things took a turn for the worse when they were notified that one of the vehicles was involved in a child abduction. An amber alert had been sent out and Swarek and McNally were ordered back to the barn for assistance on the case.

They were completely focused on the job at hand and not another word was said about the earlier incident in the car. As they headed from the parking lot of the division into the building, Sam gently touched the small of her back and whispered "Until later". She flashed him a dazzling smile and responded, "Definitely", as they separated inside the building.

The squad room was crazy busy. Television monitors were set up everywhere with the suspect's picture alongside that of the victim. Noelle was handing out fliers of information for all the cops going back on patrol.

A 9 year old girl, Rebecca Leigh, had been missing since the morning. She had walked alone to her school that morning after 9:00. Her mother received a call from the elementary school questioning her absence. Mrs. Leigh immediately called police. Less than an hour later, her picture and most recent description was all over every network news station. Jerry Barber was leading the investigation from the 15th. Mr. and Mrs. Leigh were brought in to be questioned and to be updated on the case. Jerry assigned Sam to speak to the parents to see if he could obtain any pertinent information.

Andy sympathized with the distraught Mrs. Leigh, a single parent. Sam was leaning toward the non sympathetic. Something in his gut was telling him that things were not exactly what they seemed. He could not fathom that a mother could not remember anything the child was wearing or any details from their morning together.

Jerry called Luke to weigh in on the line of questioning. Neither Sam nor Andy was too thrilled.

They met Luke in the viewing room. He showed no emotion and his questions to them were brief. Jerry joined the three as they watched through the two way mirror to see the interaction between the two parents. Jerry wanted to separate them, and talk to the mother first. Sam recommended Andy for the interview. "Jer, I think she would be great, she's young, sympathetic and a woman, they definitely made a connection before."

Luke interjected, "Bad idea, she's never done this before, the line of questioning is crucial to the investigation."

"I'd like to try." She said softly.

"Ok, McNally, you're up, but if she starts to clam up, I am taking over." Said Jerry as he guided her out of the room.

Andy gave Sam a small smile, looked over at Luke with disgust and walked out.

Sam stared at her as she left the room and waited for the door to close. The two men stared through the glass in silence as Andy slowly broke down the mother. Finally Sam couldn't hold it in anymore.

"Way to be supportive Callaghan. No wonder you two broke up." He grumbled.

"What the hell is that supposed to mean, Swarek?"

"I'm just saying,…..doesn't look like you have too much faith in her abilities."

"She told you we broke up?"

"Yeah. So. We're partners, she tells me a lot of stuff." Sam couldn't help but be smug.

"I bet she does."

"And?"

"AND, I think Andy might not have been completely honest with me about her reason for our break up."

"So, what does that have to do with your attitude toward me?"

"Geez, Sammy, you must think I'm pretty stupid. I've seen the way you look at her."

Sam bit his tongue and put on his best poker face so as not to show what he felt toward Andy. _Don't call me Sammy._

"Well, maybe, if you paid less attention to me and more attention to her, you wouldn't have lost her." Sam started to move toward the door. He knew he wore his feelings for McNally on his sleeve and was not looking to destroy either of their careers.

"Deflect all you want Swarek. There is a rule against TOs and rookies being involved. You'd better walk a fine line my friend, wouldn't want the staff sergeant to find out about anything inappropriate."

"Don't threaten me Callaghan, and definitely don't call me friend."

They had gotten so involved in their conversation, they didn't even notice that Andy had walked back into the room.

Luke turned his back on both of them and stormed out the door.

"Did I miss something?" Andy looked to Sam in a panic

"Just two guys talking."

"Oh crap Sam, now what? He can make so much trouble for us."

"Andy, relax, what trouble, nothing's going on between us."

She got quiet and looked away from him, "Oh, I …..just thought…"

He saw immediately that he should have reworded his statement. He touched her arm, "Andy, don't over think what I'm saying. What I meant to say, is nothing is going on YET." He grinned at her.

She smiled back at him, that beautiful smile. They stared at each other, both lost in the moment. Sam was the first to break the silence.

"I think you and I really need to talk. There are a few things I need to explain,….. some stuff I really should have told you a long time ago." He pushed a stray hair behind her ear. The slight contact increasing both their body temperatures. "With this case going on I don't see it being tonight."

"Well, if you two weren't in the middle of your "guy talk", you would have seen me get some crucial info that is a serious lead to our case. Jerry is working on it right now."

He went to argue but realized it was futile. He smiled and asked, "Ok, how about after work tonight?"

"Sure,….wait no, I can't. I promised Tracy I would go to the Penny with her after shift. Also, I kind of have to make it an early night, we have fire arm recertification first thing in the morning before shift."

Sam couldn't even try to hide his disappointment.

"Hey, don't over think it Swarek, there's always tomorrow."

By 9:00 that night, Rebecca was safely in the arms of her mother and father. It had been an exhausting day. When Oliver walked in with Rebecca on his hand, it was truly one of the best moments since Andy had started with the department. They decided that despite their early recertification it was definitely time to celebrate. The rookies headed out together and met up at the Penny for a celebratory beverage.

Andy saw Sam immediately and gave him a smile. He gazed at her with enough heat to melt her into mush. She hoped the blush on her face was not too noticeable. The five friends headed toward their back table, Dov, Chris and Gail heading for the dart board once they got their first round. They were barely 10 feet away when Traci turned to Andy.

"Spill it girlfriend."

"Yikes, Trace, subtle, way to ease into the conversation." They both laughed.

"I hooked up with Sam." She whispered.

"What? When?"she practically screamed.

"Traci, Oh my gosh, could you be any louder?" More laughter ensued.

She responded again quietly, "The night of the blackout. I mean, I didn't sleep with him, although I totally would have." She downed the rest of her drink.

"So what stopped you?"

"The lights came back on and all of a sudden it was like my brain switched back on. Then Luke called me, I didn't answer, I couldn't….. Traci, you know I am not a cheater."

"So what did you do?"

"I left. I went home, tried to pretend that nothing happened but I couldn't stop thinking about it, about him."

"Luke him, or Sam him?"

"Trace, you are killing me…..I couldn't stop thinking about Sam. Luke and I had dinner the other night and it was all I could do to run from the table and not have to look him in the eyes. Yesterday I was going to try to talk to Sam but he made it like it was no big deal. Luke asked about the cabin again, I didn't want to go but my guilty conscience was telling me I should try to make things right with him. Luke told Sam about the cabin and ….." she trailed off in thought

"Oh my God, that's why he went crazy in retrain. Gail told us that he was relentless. No wonder, it was a duel for the hand of the lovely McNally…..."

"Seriously, Traci." She cut her friend off, trying to hide the grin.

"So now what? You broke up with Luke because of Sam?"

"Honestly, I should have broken up with Luke a long time ago. I don't need someone else in my life letting me down all the time."

"I agree sweetie, you've had more than your share of that."

"So are you going to secretly start seeing Swarek, and I do mean secretly because you know you will be seriously screwed if you get caught and chances are they won't be too pleased with him either."

"I know, I know how tricky this could be to maneuver but I really want to try…..That night…..was the best mistake in judgment I've ever made." She smiled at her friend, "I always knew there was something between us, under the surface, a look, a smile. Obviously getting in involved with my TO, not a great idea, but Traci, if I am being completely honest, I feel for him what I have never felt for anyone… ever."

"Wow, look at you. Grown up feelings, grown up decisions, I am really impressed." As she said the words Andy gave her a mock glare.

"Well, he and I still have to talk. I mean, I am pretty sure we are on the same page but I will be very interested to hear what he has to say tomorrow. It's not like I am gonna jump right into something right away. I am not that irrational."

They shared a knowing glance. _Ok so maybe I am._

"Did you say tomorrow? Well you better watch out for right now, cause here he comes, I am going to the ladies room."

Before she could grab her friend, she was gone from the table. Sam sauntered over, a beer in his hand, a bar napkin wrapped around the bottom.

"McNally." He said very nonchalantly

"Hey sir, how are you?" trying to be business as usual

"Good. Heading out. Great job today. See you tomorrow?" he said as he left his beer bottle on the table.

She looked down at the table, and saw writing on the napkin. _Ride home? Outside 10 minutes?_

"Absolutely, sir, see you then." She inconspicuously balled up the napkin and put it in the pocket of her jeans just as the other rookies were making their way back to the table. They said goodnight to Sam as he walked past. Conveniently Traci rejoined them. After a few more minutes discussing the day, Andy got up to leave. Both Chris and Traci offered a ride but Andy claimed that she would prefer to walk. She grabbed her bag and headed out the door. Sam's truck was nowhere to be found. She looked at her watch and realized that she was a bit longer than the 10 minutes. _He probably just went home._

She started in the direction of her apartment. About a block from the Penny she heard a vehicle approaching. None other than the familiar grey pick up truck.

"Hey beautiful, need a ride home?"

"That would be great."

They rode in silence for the rest of the trip. When they got to Andy's apartment, Sam got out opening her door and helping her out. He walked her to her door and waited for her to find her key. She turned to him, "Do you want to come in?"

"Just for a minute, that's it." she gave him an odd look

As soon as the door was shut behind them he spun her around to face him. His one hand still on her waist, his other cupping her face, he pulled her toward him for a kiss. What started out gently, intensified quickly. They both broke away for air.

"Good night Andy." He said breathily.

"Good night? I thought you wanted to talk?"

"I do but I know you have an early day in the morning. We'll have plenty of time to talk tomorrow, I just needed that kiss….to help me sleep tonight." With that he was gone.

_Sleep? Who's gonna be able to sleep after that?_

**_Please review. I am always eager to hear your comments and input...Lisa_**


	6. Chapter 6 Full Disclosure

**A/N: Couldn't decide if I wanted to follow the episodes as we saw them or make up my own as the relationship has changed. Decided to do a little of both. Hope I did it justice, had to include some familiar lines, cause they are just too good. **

Chapter 6 Full Disclosure

Andy cringed at the sound of her alarm clock. It wasn't that she didn't want to get up for work but it had woken her from her dreams. Her dreams of Sam. It had taken her forever to fall asleep after their heated kiss, and his quick exit. She could only hope where this was headed but was still curious to hear what he had to say. She wasn't too confident of them being paired today. It would all depend on the fire arm drill this morning. They would probably try some time after shift. With the hope of that in her thoughts, she jumped up from the bed and raced to get ready.

Oliver was already at the shooting range waiting for the group when they finally came in. He immediately put them through multiple drills. He tested their reaction time and put them through uncontrolled situations. Occasionally he would have them drop to the ground and do push ups just to get their adrenaline going. The whole process was a rush. In the end, unfortunately, only one of them would pass. Andy. The frustrated rookies made their way to parade with their tails between their legs then quickly took their seats in the front of the room.

Sergeant Best, obviously in a hurry, quickly briefed the group but not before reprimanding the rookies on their "fiasco" of a session.

"It's been five months since the academy. You get to carry a gun, but you need to know how to use it."

"McNally, you were the only one to pass your recertification, so as a reward I am sending you to Sudbury." Sam felt a sense of pride at this, his rookie, his Andy. _His Andy, he hoped._

"Excuse me Sir?"

"Sudbury, to transport a prisoner." said Best

"By myself?"

"No…..Swarek, brief your rookie on the details."

Andy gave a quick look over to Sam. She hoped that her smile was not giving too much away_. Sudbury, she thought to herself, 5 hours away. Five hours in the car with Sam? Five hours in the car with Sam_!

Sam, who had been told about the prisoner detail before parade, had not been thrilled but in light of this current change of events couldn't have been happier.

The group was dismissed. "McNally, meet you in 5, we have a long day, step it up." He said gruffly.

Andy grabbed the equipment bag and almost ran out to the car. She stowed the bag and her jacket and started to put on her seatbelt.

"So, McNally, did you sleep well last night?"

She tried to stop the blush from showing on her face but to no avail. It was almost like he was reading her thoughts.

"Yes, officer Swarek, I slept quite well thank you." _Liar_

"Good, me too." He smiled at her.

She felt her ears get warm. Those darn dimples doing their magic. She tried to change the subject.

"So, Sudbury? prisoner transport, did you draw the short straw?"

"Are you kidding McNally? I consider this hitting the lottery. No radio interruption, for the next five hours, you are all mine."

"Really? So what are we gonna talk about for five hours? I mean, that amount of conversation might kill someone like you." She teased.

"Someone like me? What does that mean?" he said with a grin.

"Well, you don't exactly share what's on your mind, unless you're angry with me about something." She grinned back at him.

"To be honest, McNally, I am not really a big sharer unless I know the person really well and they ask me. Even then, I realize I am not very forthcoming. It would have to be someone really special."

"Well, would I fit into that category?"

"Which one? The someone special or the person I know really well?"

"I mean the former, but why don't we start with the latter?"

"Sounds good to me."

"So what did you want to talk to me about? We certainly have plenty of time on our hands."

Sam took a deep breath before speaking.

"I don't even know where to start."

She touched him on the arm and said, "Why not start at the beginning."

"Alright" she saw a twinkle in his eyes, "Let me tell you a little story…There is this guy, we'll call him….. "Cam". He's been a cop for about 10 years. He was involved in an undercover operation for about 8 months until one fine day, a young rookie cop kicks in the door of the apartment he is dealing out of. Forget the fact that she shouldn't have been on her own, forget the fact that she looked petrified, and forget the fact that she was the most beautiful woman he had ever seen."

Andy got butterflies just hearing him talk about her this way. She kept staring at him, his eyes trained completely on the road. He continued, "So, this rook, we'll call her…... "Sandy" arrests Cam despite his attempts to notify her that he is also a cop….."

"But Sam, you…."

"Excuse me McNally, this is **my** story. So,….he gets made in front of his informant. It's not really even her fault but he places the blame there anyway." He shoots a remorseful glance at her, however, she seems to be fascinated with a piece of imaginary lint on her pants.

"The next shift he is partnered with "Sandy" with all intents of torturing her. He was definitely going to make her pay for screwing up his big bust and getting him put back in uniform. There was only one problem, she actually had the potential to be an amazing cop. So he throws everything he can at her but she is unyielding and even surprises Cam with her smarts. Later that night after a drink at the local pub, she catches up with him in the parking lot. He is amazed by her capacity to care about someone she barely knew. He is also in awe of her honesty when she admits that she wasn't afraid that day because, he was there. He tried to kiss her that night and she turned him away as to not jeopardize their jobs. He appreciated the sincerity but was disappointed to say the least."

Andy hadn't said another word since she tried to interrupt him. She was trying to digest these revelations.

"Sam, I am so sorry, it wasn't that I wasn't attracted to you, I just …..started, you were my TO, it was complicated."

"I know…..the complicated part…but there's more to my story."

"Go ahead."

"So, after that night at the bar, Cam hopes that one day they **will** have their chance. They're partnered regularly and he couldn't be happier. The more he gets to know this girl, the crazier about her he gets. Until one day, he hears that she is dating another cop in their division, we'll call him…."Puke". Andy rolled her eyes at Sam and laughed.

"So Puke, is a hot shot detective who thinks he's better than everyone else. Somehow, he wins the heart of our fair Sandy. Poor Cam is devastated. Over the next few months he repeatedly attempts to patch up Puke and Sandy's relationship because Cam really just wants her to be happy…..even if it isn't with him. Cam tries to put on his best mask, but to the people who know him, they see right through it. One day the fearless duo runs into Cam's sometimes girlfriend. It takes her all of two seconds to see that Cam has it bad for his partner. She immediately calls him out on his crush and gives him an out from their relationship."

Andy thinks back to the day she met Monica and how she acted like she owned Sam.

"Wow, I had no idea, you never led me to believe…..you always tried to patch me and Luke up, how was I to know?"

Sam bit his bottom lip and gave a slight shrug never letting his eyes leave the road.

"Ok, Sam, so catch me up to the present. Your story has been very fascinating but I'd like to hear the rest directly from you." She raised an eyebrow to him. He spoke quietly.

"I had been in your shoes, having to kill someone as a rookie. I knew exactly what you were feeling and I would have given anything to take that pain away from you. You seemed so in control or were hell bent on pretending that you were, I needed you to know that I would be there for you if you needed me."

"That's the thing Sam, you don't need to tell me that because you are always there for me. I can always count on you, you are the one constant in my life."

He gave her a smile. "I felt like I let you down, you were there with Shaw, like somehow I would have protected you. Anyhow, that night, you left and went home. I figured that you were just dealing with things in your own way. When I heard that knock at my door, I couldn't imagine who it would be at that hour. When I saw your face I was worried but at the same time thrilled that you had come to me, that you had trust in me enough to come to me." Andy knew what was coming next, she didn't have the nerve to look at him but at the same time couldn't look away.

"And then, you kissed me…..and honestly Andy, I was completely done for. It was like my best dream had come true. Of course, if I was the responsible, by the book training officer that I am supposed to be, I would have stopped us….the truth is, I didn't want to. As you stood in my bedroom, I thought I was having an out of body experience. I'll be honest with you, I never felt **anything** like that with anyone and we didn't even sleep together."

Andy shuddered at the thought of Luke calling her that night and interrupting what she would imagine would have been the best night of her life.

"Let's go back to the other day…...I was nervous to see you. Actually nervous. I don't know what I thought was gonna happen. You and Luke were still a couple, we could get in trouble. I really didn't get much of a chance to think about it, I was just gonna wing it, until Luke came up to me and bragged about his damn cabin. Soooooo, I pretended that night didn't mean anything and acted like an immature idiot for the rest of the day. Yep,…..I think that's it in a nut shell. Anything to add?"

"Wow, that is some story. Would you like to hear my version?"

"I think I would." Suddenly the growling of Andy's stomach was heard loud and clear. "Though, maybe I should feed you first, sound good?"

"Definitely."

The pulled into a diner at the half way point to their destination. They ordered lunch and made small talk, mostly about the transporting of the prisoner. Andy had gotten quiet since their conversation in the car. Sam could only hope that she wasn't having second thoughts. He told her as much as he knew about the case. The prisoner's name was Ray Donald Swan. He had signed a plea deal to avoid prosecution on a drug charge. In the process, he would be testifying against some much bigger fish. Their job was to escort Swan to the prosecutor's office so they could prepare him for trial. Sam tried to get Andy to smile with a few of his dumbest jokes. She smiled but her mind was elsewhere. She was trying to figure out what to say when they had to get back in that car. The waitress came over and asked if there was anything else they needed.

"Yes, miss, my partner was wondering if you had any henways on the menu?"

"What's a henway?"

"About three pounds." With that Andy snorted her coffee out of her nose. The two of them started to crack up. The waitress looked at them in disbelief and left the check on the table. Sam paid the bill and they walked back to the squad car. Sam handed Andy the keys and motioned for her to drive. They belted in and got back on the highway.

"Henway Sam? Really? What are you eight?"

"Actually I was nine when I mastered that beauty. I tried to entertain my sister when I was a kid but she never reacted like you did."

"Oh, cool, you have a sister?"

"Yeah, her name is Sarah, she lives a couple hours from Toronto."

"Are you guys close?"

"Yeah,... I mean we're all each other has since my mom died."

"Oh, I am so sorry, I didn't know."

"Andy, it's fine. It was years ago."

Andy didn't really want to get into a whole mom chat. Her mom had deserted her and at this point she didn't really care where she was. Sam noticed the far away look in her eyes and thought back to one of their first weeks of work when he heard her talking about her mom leaving when she was a teenager. He figured this was as good a time as any to change the subject.

"So, I think this would be a perfect time to hear **your **version of **my **story."

"Okay…..here goes. That first day we "met" I was petrified. I didn't know what the hell I was doing. Then I stumbled upon you and that other slimy guy. When I tackled you, patted you down and put on those cuffs for the first time, wow, what a rush. I thought I was such hot stuff taking you in. When I found out you were a cop, I almost cried. I felt like such an idiot. I do appreciate that you helped me out with my first "real" collar. You were very unforgiving that night of me, but in the end you still wanted the bad guy. I was embarrassed but at the same time, I had a lot of respect for you. That continued on our next shift, even though you tried to torture me. I know you weren't thrilled to be back on patrol but if I am being honest, …..let's just say, you wear that uniform **really** well." She smiled at him and could swear that she saw a blush rising on his cheeks.

"Geez, when Boyko put us together that day, I wanted to die. What the hell was he thinking? You handled that whole Emily thing,….you were just so great. Right then I knew that I could learn so much from you. I knew that was the kind of cop that I wanted to be. That night in the parking lot,….. the almost kiss,… I wanted it too but for a split second my head cleared. I already blew your cover, now I am gonna get involved with my training officer and screw up both our lives?" That's why I walked away. I didn't really mean to disregard, but I did mean what I said before that."

"Which was?"

"I wasn't scared because you were there. That's how I feel every day, knowing you always have my back. That's why I went to you the night of the blackout. Luke, volunteered for the case, and I went home alone. I couldn't sleep, all I could do was cry. I tried to think of how to get that guys face out of my head. You were the only one who could help me. I knew you would have my back. So…..I ran to your house,... kissed you, and I would have slept with you right there no questions asked."

"But you didn't, you left….why?"

"The lights came on and I was suddenly jolted into reality. I had Luke, he tried to call me, I didn't answer. Sam, I'm not a cheater, I had to leave before I did something I would regret."

Sam remembered that night in detail, her lips, her skin, her body and of course ...her exit.

"Little did I know, Sam, that my only regret would be that I didn't stay."

**Really meant to get farther along in time than I did but wanted to give you a quicker update. Hope that's okay.**


	7. Chapter 7 Swan Dive

**A/N: Sorry for the non-quick update. My husband had surgery last week so aside from being the wife/mother/employee I added nurse to my repertoire. Again, trying to follow the episodes in time but not in content. A few familiar lines that I have borrowed from the show, definitely not my genius. Hope you enjoy.**

**Chapter 7-Swan Dive**

"Little did I know, Sam, that my only regret would be that I didn't stay."

Sam gave a quick glance in her direction, not really believing what she had just uttered until she looked back at him and he could see it, remorse.

The silence lingered for what seemed like an eternity, each of them contemplating what should have been. Almost on cue they pulled up to the Sudbury Prison. She shut off the car and stared straight ahead.

"God, you must have hated me." She said in a quiet voice.

"McNally,…. I tried,…. believe me I tried but I don't think there is anything you could do for me to ever hate you. The more I get to know you, the more I want to spend time with you."

She smiled. "Well, good, because as soon as we get back, I'd like us to do just that."

"Sounds good to me."

"Alright, Officer Swarek, let's grab this Swan guy, and get out of here."

"Piece of cake."

The corrections officer had Ray Donald Swan's processing papers. Sam signed the transfer to their custody and they were on their way. Ray Swan was a real talker. He gave Andy a run for her money. Finally, Sam advised her to stop talking to him.

They stopped to get fuel just outside Sudbury before getting back on the main highway. Sam pumped the gas while Andy cleaned the windows. They allowed Swan to stand outside for some fresh air.

"Why do men always wait till the last minute to fill up with gas?" she smiled at Sam.

"Wasn't the last minute." He said innocently.

"Yeah, it was on empty, we would have been riding on fumes the rest of the way."

Swan interjected, "Needle on empty means a quarter of a tank."

"Nobody asked you."

Andy smiled at the irritation in Sam's voice, it was going to be a long ride home.

"Well, empty means empty, ya know, it's a good thing we're friends, or this would be a major bone of contention between us." she mock threatened.

_Yikes, did she just use the friends word?_

As if reading his mind, Swan again put in his two cents.

"You guys aren't friends."

"Yeah we are." Andy was defensive

"You've got nothing in common. Then there's the power dynamic right? You gotta boss her around all the time, and you…" he looked to Andy, "running around trying to please him at every turn."

Just the thought was making Andy get warm and she could feel a blush rising on her cheeks, she just prayed that she wasn't smiling.

She stuttered, "No! I'm not."

"He's got a lot of expectations, kind of feel like you owe him something, don't you?...Let me tell you. Friends, they don't owe, they do cause the wanna do."

Sam had had enough, "If I buy you a hot dog, will you shut up?"

"Put mustard on it, please?" With that Andy watched as Sam walked into the convenience store of the station.

Andy turned back to Swan, "He just likes silence."

"Hey, how long you guys been sleeping together?" he whispered to her.

"What? No!, We're not, no we're friends…I'm just gonna pay for the gas."

Andy couldn't help but worry. This stranger met them fifteen minutes ago and he was reading Sam and Andy like a best seller. What if the people at work caught on? This was a dangerous road they were going to walk. Was she ready for this?"

Sam returned with the hot dog and they got back in the squad car, Sam behind the wheel. They hadn't driven more than a few miles when Sam pulled to the side of the road.

Andy laughed at him. "Why didn't you just use the men's room at the gas station?"

"It was out of order."

"So, use the ladies."

"Yeah, nothing looks better than a uniformed cop skulking out of the ladies room."

He had a point.

"McNally, don't talk to the prisoner, don't get out of the car, don't touch anything, ….I'll be back in two minutes." He jumped out of the car and ran across the street into the woods. Within seconds of Sam's departure, Swan started to complain of breathing trouble. Apparently he was allergic to whatever the hot dog had been cooked in. Andy was out of the car in a flash to get the epi pen out of the medical kit in the back seat. As soon as she started to open the door she realized the enormity of her mistake. Swan kicked the door out knocking the wind out of her. He grabbed the hand cuff keys from her belt and bolted into the woods.

Sam returned to the car and panic set in when he realized no one was in the car. He heard a groan as he walked around the car. Andy was trying to catch her breath. He knelt at her side. "Are you okay? What the hell happened?"

"He was complaining that he couldn't breathe, so I went to get the epi pen and when I opened the door he kicked it into me….?

"McNally, what were you thinking? You never open the door when the prisoners legs are facing you, that's just common sense." He was angry, really angry.

"I'm sorry, I guess I didn't think that….."

"No you didn't! Now we have to find this guy."

"Should we call for back up?"

"By the time they get here, he will be long gone!" He was furious.

"Well, then let's go find him." With that she slammed the car door and started into the woods, Sam following behind her. Sam looked a bit out of sorts in the woods, Andy noticed. He went to move a branch out of the way, when Andy grabbed his hand. "No, Sam, that's Poison Oak!"

"How am I supposed to know? I was born and bred in the City." He said gruffly. They walked for what seemed like an eternity, when they came upon Swan's cuffs. Suddenly they heard a cracking of brush not far from where they were standing. Sam told Andy to try talking him out and Sam would capture him. They split up. After a few minutes of trying to coax Swan out of hiding, he appeared out of nowhere. In a second he had knocked Andy to the ground with a tree limb. She was caught out of breath for a second time that day. Before she knew it, Swan was on top of her trying to choke her to death. Andy struggled for air, trying with all her might to release his grip. Her mind was all over the place. _Things could not end like this. Sam, where are you?_ Almost as if he could read her mind she saw a flash out of the corner of her eye and she could suddenly breathe again. She jumped up from her position on the ground to see Sam on top of Swan. He looked over to her, his eyes saying what his voice could not.

It was getting dark. Sam rehandcuffed Swan and nearly threw him into the back of the car. He helped Andy onto the hood of the car and attemped to assess her injuries. Aside from the cut on her leg, she looked no worse for wear. He rolled up her pant leg trying not to stare at her. He cleaned the wound and started to bandage it.

"Sam,… I'm so sorry that this all happened."

"Andy, don't. I'm sorry for freaking out on you. I was out of line."

"You were doing your job. Unfortunately, I didn't do mine."

"I wish I could say it was all about the job…...when you weren't in the car, then I saw you lying there…..I …..could barely breathe. If something ever happened to you…" He looked over her shoulder and glared at the sleeping form of Ray Swan in the back seat.

"I don't know what I would do if….."

"I know Sam. I feel the same way. You have been more than just my training officer for some time now, I just didn't realize it." He was at a loss for words and made busiwork of pulling a small leaf from her finished with her wound and rolled her pants back down. He reached out his hand to her to help her off the car hood.

"How does it feel? Are you okay?"

"Good,…. I'm great actually." She stood staring into those eyes. Sam played with the glove on his hand and glanced up at the moon. When he looked back at her she was just inches from him. She reached her hand around his neck and pulled him down for a kiss. Her lips moved against his so naturally. She pulled back for a second. "Thank you."

"For what?" he asked

"For saving my ass again." She grinned

This time when she kissed him it was less gentle. Her tongue was looking for entrance and he was all to willing to grant it. They both pulled away when the need for air became too much. He had his arms around her waist and the last thing he wanted was to let go.

"McNally, as much as I could stand here and kiss you all night….and don't get me wrong, I definitely could" he grinned, "We better get back to the barn with this clown, it's been a long day."

"You're right."

Sam helped her into the car. He jumped in and quickly got back on the highway. It was late when they got back to the Division. Jerry was in the garage waiting for them. New evidence had come to light in Jerry's case and Ray Swan was now the prime suspect. Andy and Sam couldn't think of a better turn of events. Once Jerry was out of sight, Sam asked Andy if she wanted a ride home.

"I would appreciate that since at this rate it would take me hours to get home."

"No problem, McNally. Give me ten minutes and I will meet you outside by my truck."

"Aren't you afraid someone might see us?"

"Giving you a ride? I don't think anyone will be too suspicious." He mocked as he headed for the locker room.

Twenty minutes later Andy emerged from the building. Her leg had slowed her process just a little bit. Sam's face lit up as she approached his truck. She was stunning. Even in uniform he found it hard not to stare at her but here she was in jeans and a t-shirt, her hair down around her shoulders and he couldn't get over how beautiful she was. _Geez, Sammy, you got it bad._

"I'm pooped, how about you?" she asked

"It **was **a really long day. I talked to Frank and he gave us tomorrow off. He figured you could use the extra day to recuperate and I told him that I had some personal stuff I needed to take care of."

"Oh, really, what?" she sounded disappointed

"You, I have to take care of you." he flashed her that dimpled smile.

* * *

><p>Sam walked Andy up to her door and helped her in.<p>

"Could you stay for a while?" More a statement than a question.

"Sure."

Andy took out a couple of beers and crashed on the sofa. Her leg was throbbing but she tried to put on a brave face.

"Andy, why don't you take some Tylenol and get some sleep, I am sure you will feel better in the morning."

"Yeah, I probably should…..Listen, Sam, I know we are new to this me and you thing and I am not looking to rush things with us but…would you mind staying here tonight?" Sleep with me, ...but not sleep with me?"

"McNally, I thought you'd never ask."

They made their way to her bedroom. He helped her to get her pants off, not that his help was necessary. She went into the bathroom to wash up and came out in an oversized t-shirt and her girly shorts.

One glance at her and Sam was seriously rethinking the sleepover. He took his turn in the bathroom not just to wash up but to cool down. He wasn't sure he could do this.

He climbed in next to her and she snuggled up to his chest. He placed a soft kiss on her forehead and watched her quickly fall asleep. He could only wish for the same for himself.

_Piece of cake Sam. Yeah right._

**_As always, I get such a kick out of your reviews. You are all too kind. Please let me know your thoughts on this one...Lisa _**


	8. Chapter 8 Only in my dreams

**A/N:****Hello to my faithful readers and reviewers. So grateful to you all. Here is the next chapter, hope you enjoy. I am totally enjoying the rerun episodes building up to what looks like an awesome second season of Rookie Blue. Can't wait to see where they take us this year!**

**Chapter 8 Only in My Dreams**

Andy woke up feeling more rested than she had in weeks. Her leg was still sore but no more of the constant throbbing from last night. She smiled as she remembered snuggling up to Sam last night and feeling so perfectly content in his arms. She did a double take as she realized that Mr. Contentment was not currently in her bed. She threw her hair up in a messy bun and walked out to the kitchen. She smelled the freshly made coffee and started to pour some just as her front door opened.

"Good morning Officer Swarek, and where have you been? She smiled

"I couldn't sleep, so I thought I would go out and get us some breakfast."

The smile left Andy's face as she recalled all the times that she couldn't sleep waking up next to Luke. She would clean, she would cook, do laundry, anything to try to prevent herself from bolting. Sam saw the look on her face and quickly wrapped his arms around her, kissing her neck.

"McNally, I see those gears turning in your head. Trust me, it wasn't because I was looking to bail. I just spent the night in bed with the most beautiful woman I have ever met and had to force myself not to touch her. I figured for my own sake, I better make myself busy." He leaned back from her to look at her and gave her the full Swarek dimples. "So, I got your favorite blueberry muffin and as a back up a chocolate chip one, otherwise you can share some of my egg sandwich."

"The muffin is perfect, thank you." She poured him a cup of coffee as they sat at her kitchen counter to eat.

"So, what did you want to do today?" he asked matter of factly

"Huh?…. your gonna stay?"

"Well, not if you don't want me to." He chuckled.

"No, no, no I would love for us to hang out today."

"Well, that's good because that's all I have on my agenda. How's your leg this morning?"

"Better. A little sore but much better."

"I'm glad. Jerry called me this morning. Swan was being arraigned today. In addition to the murder charges, they also added one count of assaulting a police officer. When the courts are done with him, we won't see him for a long time."

"Good riddance. Strange, he almost seemed likable. I couldn't get over how polite he was, he almost seemed… normal?"

"Andy, the best cons can make themselves out to be anything they want, including "normal". That's why you always have to be on your guard, and go with that gut feeling. "When Sarah and I were kids, there were these high school guys who hung out near our neighborhood. I never liked them but they would always say hi to my sister and she loved that they paid attention to her because they were older. One night…she was walking home from her friend's house, it was almost dark, and they attacked her." Andy felt like she was holding her breath. "I was only 9 at the time, I didn't really get it, but she was really messed up by it and never the same after that day. I think that's when I started to go with my gut. If something didn't feel right I avoided it and from that day on I swore that no one I cared about would ever have to go through something like that ever again."

"So you decided to become a cop." More a statement than a question.

He nodded and then turned his head to look at her.

"Well lucky for me Sam,… lucky for me." It was her turn to pull him into an embrace as she kissed his cheek. His arms curled around her back and his hands grazed the warm skin of her back. The electricity between them was palpable and they both pulled away from each other, Andy nervously pushing the hair behind her ears while Sam fumbled with what to do with his hands.

"Alright McNally, You've got an hour. I'm going home to shower, you get ready and I will meet you back here. Sound good?"

"On one condition." She raised her eyebrow to him.

"Anything." He challenged.

"Off duty, you have to call me Andy."

"I can live with that." He shot her a wink and was out the door.

* * *

><p>As promised, Sam was back within an hour. Dressed in a police sweatshirt and jeans, he knocked on the door to her apartment and was very in tune to the fact that he was nervous. He had butterflies in his stomach. He hadn't been this anxious about spending time with a woman since…well, never. She was like kryptonite and he was utterly powerless around her. She answered the door in jeans and a PD sweatshirt, her hair falling around her shoulders and she looked…..beautiful. The only words that came to his mind, <em>God, I love this girl. What? Did I say that out loud?<em>

"Sam did you hear me? Hey are you okay?" her words finally breaking him out of his daze.

"Huh?, Oh, sure, yeah, fine. What did you say?"

"I said, we look like twins, I am going to go change my sweatshirt."

Realizing that they were dressed the same, he laughed. She walked away to change and he smacked himself in the head to snap out of it.

She returned from her bedroom within a minute, "So what would you like to do?"

"Have you ever been to Smiths Point Park?" he asked

"No."

"I didn't know what you would be up for but there's a lake there and I figured we could go have lunch. If you feel up to it, we can check out the nature preserve."

"Sounds great. I'm actually feeling much better and you know I am always up for one of our adventures but… I thought you were a city boy?" she smirked.

"Well, you're the nature girl and I wanted to spend time with you, seemed like a no brainer to me."

"Awww, you are really sweet."

"I know. Just don't tell anybody." He smiled

The hopped into his truck and made the 45 minute ride East of the city. They made comfortable conversation, neither one ever acknowledging the obvious need to be discreet and traveling 30 miles for lunch no less. When they got to the park, Andy was like a kid in a candy shop. She jumped right out of the truck. Sam grabbed a cooler and a blanket from the back seat and they headed down the path through the woods toward the lake area. It was a beautiful fall day but mid week fairly quiet at the park. They walked in silence for a few yards. Andy reached for Sam's free hand. He looked over to her, she was grinning but never looked back at him. They finally reached the lake area. Andy laid out the blanket and Sam unpacked their lunch.

She stared at him as he laid out the mass amount of food before them.

"This is really nice Sam, but were you expecting a small army? This is way too much food for us."

"I tried to get all your favorites, I didn't know what you would be in the mood for. We can eat the rest for dinner later."

"Oh really?" she asked mockingly "Breakfast, Lunch **and **Dinner together?"

"Andy, the way I see it, you finally let me in, You're gonna have a hard time getting rid of me."

She was taken back by his honesty and her heart was beating out of her chest. Normally, this type of conversation would have sent her running for the hills but with Sam it was different. She didn't want to run and she would do anything to make him stay.

"That's okay by me."

"Good."

"So Sam, I think our traipse through the woods yesterday turned you into a nature lover."

_More like my McNally loving turned me into a nature lover._

He smiled to himself. "I know you love it, so I figured you'd like this. My sister and I used to come here with our day camp as kids. Parks and Recreation would bus us city kids out to the country and we would spend the day swimming and climbing and running around. It was great. After my sister's attack we never came back. She never really wanted to do much of anything after that. Funny as a grown up, I love coming back here, it helps me clear my head. "

"When was the last time you were here?"

He hesitated, "The weekend after the blackout."

No explanation was needed. She took a sip from her iced tea and looked right at him.

"Sam, what are we gonna do about work?"

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I don't want either one of us getting in trouble, but it's gonna be difficult trying to hide how I feel about you."

It was Sam's heart that was beating out of his chest this time.

"Andy, I'm not sure that either of us has been hiding anything too effectively. Shaw has called me out on it a few times, Monica caught on, Noelle said something the other morning, I mean she didn't know I was smiling over **you…**….even Diaz picked up on it. How about you?"

"Gail saw us in the parking lot that night, she made a comment that we were cozy. Traci has made a few comments to remind me that you are the bad boy that I should stay away from and" she sighed…...Can't you see,... that's how I ended up with Luke."

"Because Traci felt he was good for you?"

"No, no…..she's my friend, she knows that I **always** go for the bad boy, never the safe one."

Sam didn't even want to know what number **always **included.

"The irony Sam? I have never felt safer than I am when I'm with you."

He grabbed her for a mind numbing kiss. As he pulled away for a second, one look at her and he needed more. They sat their making out like a couple of high school kids. Finally, not wanting to attack each other in the middle of the park, they decided to walk through the preserve. Andy pointed out different plants, birds, other creatures. Sam didn't really care what they were called but got a kick out of her being his tour guide. As the sun started to disappear behind the trees, it got a bit cooler. They packed up their stuff and with his arm on her shoulders and hers around his waist they returned to the truck to start to head for home.

They were going to rent a couple of movies on the way home but instead decided to watch the hockey game. As they entered her apartment, Sam's cell phone began to ring.

"Swarek here."

"Hey brother, I know you are enjoying a day off but Shaw decided to have an impromptu card game tonight. I figured you'd be in but just wanted to check."

"Yeah, ...listen man, I can't make it tonight."

"Come on Sam, we need a sixth. Got a hot date?"

"As a matter of fact I do."

Andy, who could hear the entire conversation on speaker phone, got wide eyed at his statement. _He wouldn't._

"Who's the lucky lady? Where did you meet her?"

"Just this amazing woman I met on the corner of I'm not telling You and Mind your own business."

Sam heard Jerry reiterating his comment to Shaw. Cat calls insued.

"Good for you Sammy! About time you got McNally out of your system." Shaw yelled

"What's he talking about?" asked Jerrry

"Gotta go." With that Sam closed his phone.

"So, …I was in your system?" Andy asked with her most innocent voice.

Sam got serious. "Andy, I think I was a goner from the day you arrested me. Maybe not at that **exact** moment. I was too busy blaming you for Jerry's error in judgement ...Ya, know, I asked Boyko to partner us my first shift back. " He watched her eyes widen with surprise. "Yep, thought I would torture you a little. The joke, apparently, was on me. Spending all that time with you, getting to know you,...It was like I was in my own self inflicted torture, more so once you started dating Callaghan."

"I really am sorry Sam. I mean, I always felt like there was something between us but I never realized how deep the feelings went... Besides the fact that you're my TO and how complicated that makes things. How did I not see what was right in front of me?"

"I don't know Andy, I mean I am extremely irresistable." He laughed trying to lighten the mood.

She giggled..."I guess Luke was a simple answer. If I didn't really love him then I couldn't get hurt, right? You on the other hand, have the potential to crush me."

"Andy, I would never, could never... do that." He kissed her forehead.

"So,... you must find **me** extremely irresistable, you just gave up your poker game for me."

"I do and honestly, I would give up anything for you." He saw her eyes begin to fill with tears. He grabbed her hand, to comfort her, but instead she started to lead him toward her bedroom.

"Andy, wait, I thought we were gonna take things slow."

"This is slow,... I've waited years to be this happy."

**Please let me know what you think. My guess is 3 more chapters unless you want me to stop here?**

**Lisa**


	9. Chapter 9 Always the protector

**A/N: Ok, so much for shorter chapters, quicker updates. LOL Hope you are not mad with me. This chapter was a struggle to write. I am trying to follow the episodes, as you all know, but almost skipped this one in my frustration. However, I felt it was important to the story to show Sam's support. Sorry it is long, I just felt like I had to summarize the case as the day unfolded. Please review, it truly makes my day.**

**Chapter 9 Always the Protector**

Dreading the awkward morning after, Andy refused to open her eyes. As if just avoiding the inevitable would make it not happen. As she became more awake, she felt the sheet tucked around her and someone breathing into her neck and she couldn't help but smile.

"What are you smiling at? He felt it more than saw it.

"Nothing,….. well, you and me. I'm just happy, that okay with you?"

"Mmmm hmmm." as he placed kisses down her neck.

"Geez, Sam, didn't you get enough of me last night?"

"I don't think I could ever get enough of you."

"Last night was **amazing**." She felt him smile now. "And now I'll have to be tortured all day, riding next to you and not being able to, you know…"

"Oh,….. I know."

She was quiet now.

"Andy, what?, Don't think it's all about the sex, because believe me it's not."

"No, I was just thinking,… I can't believe I wasted all these months."

"Wasted?"

"Not realizing how amazing you are, ...how happy we could be."

"Yes, those months of you fawning over Callaghan were torture. All that matters now is that you finally did realize how completely awesome I am!"

She giggled at his reply. Relief spread over Andy upon her realization that things weren't the least bit awkward and that finally, she and Sam were on the same page. She held the sheet around her and got up from the bed, making her way to the bathroom. Sam was leaning on one elbow just staring at her. He had slept in his boxers but was shirtless and there was no question in either of their minds that Andy noticed. As she tried to mentally make the blush subside from her face, she giggled and closed the bathroom door.

Sam lay in Andy's bed with his hands behind his head staring at the ceiling. It was like his best fantasy had finally come true, and so worth it. Today would be a challenge but he was confident that they could hide this for as long as they needed to. It was almost as if he felt the need to give himself a pep talk. They didn't want to jeopardize either of their jobs but she was it for him and there was no way he was giving up a chance at that. Once Andy was cut loose, there would be no restrictions on a relationship and they could gradually share their happiness with their friends. Until then, it would have to be business as usual. Sam turned as he heard the bathroom door open, to see Andy wearing a towel and nothing else.

"Your turn Sam." Sam came out of his trance and grabbed his bag he had brought over the night before. He looked over his shoulder as he went to close the bathroom door.

_Business as usual? Yeah right._

* * *

><p>Sam dropped Andy off 2 blocks from the precinct. It wouldn't have been strange for him to drive her to work but after last nights events, neither felt they were good enough actors to school their feelings from their colleagues.<p>

Sam made his way to the men's locker room only to find Jerry and Oliver waiting for him.

"Ok, who is she?" they asked in unison

"Who is who?" Sam played dumb

"You blew off poker and now a secret girlfriend? She must be something else." said Jerry

"Yes, she is."

"How long have you been seeing her? How did you not tell us?"

"I've known her for a while, but the dating is still new, not looking to jinx anything." Sam replied

"Alright Sammy, you keep your secret for a little while but not too long, I need to live vicariously through you." Shaw joked

Sam shook his head as he finished dressing and they headed out of the locker room to parade.

Sam grabbed his usual spot off to the side but not before shooting a quick smile to Andy who was sitting up front.

"So how was the holidate with Swarek the other day, you never filled me in." Traci nudged her.

"It was great, fine, good. I got a little banged up but I feel almost 100 percent."

"It must have been torture for all those hours being trapped in the car with Mr. Cranky.

"No Trace, he is actually pretty cool. We talked about a lot of stuff and we're friends now."

Traci watched the smile take over Andy's face. Curiosity made her look back at Swarek who was staring at Andy and smiling himself. She leaned in close and whispered, "Friends or Friend-ly?"

Fortunately, Sgt. Best walked in and Andy was saved from digging her own hole any further. Attention immediately was given to an audio recording of Chris and Dov reporting that they were locked out of their car. Andy had her share of disasters thus far, grateful she was not the butt of that joke. Sam and Andy were again partnered together and quietly made their way to the car. Sam's phone rang and after a short conversation they were on their way on patrol.

"So, where are we headed?"

"St. Michael's Hospital."

"I didn't see that on..."

"It's a favor. Monica called."

Andy bit her lip but their was no hiding that she was not happy.

"Andy, it's work related, nothing else."

"Of course."

They found Monica almost immediately in the emergency room. A young woman had been brought there with a broken wrist and some bruises. She was treated and ready to be released but she was still hanging around. Monica had a feeling that her injuries were no accident and called Sam to see if he could find out what happened.

Andy was skeptical that she would talk to them but Sam was optimistic. They interviewed the woman only to find out that she had accepted a ride from a good-looking, well dressed man in his early thirties. He took her through the park and assaulted her and was looking for more when another car pulled in to the parking lot. The young woman took the opportunity and bolted from the car. As she was running away, she heard what she thought was gun shots. Afraid the man would come after, her since he still had her purse with her id, she had been lingering at the hospital to decide what to do.

Andy took her information and a statement and they took off for the park. The car of the assailant was the only one in the parking lot, its doors ajar but with no occupants. Andy found the victim's purse in the front seat but Sam found the attacker dead in the brush, with six rounds in his chest. He called dispatch and waited for the detectives and crime scene to arrive.

Luck of the draw would have Luke on the case. Andy felt like he seemed way to excited about a murder. When Sam asked if they found any id, they found out his name was Trevor Calisiak. Sam recalled the last name from a case that Mr. McNally had worked on years ago. Luke asked if Andy would get in touch with her dad and see if maybe he had any insight to the case. Sam immediately sensed her discomfort and promised Luke that they would take a run by his apartment and see if he remembered anything. Luke who was so oblivious to Andy's feelings most of the time, couldn't help but notice the easy and casual relationship she had with her partner. Still bitter, he stared them down as they walked away.

"Sam, this isn't a good idea. I think my dad was on a bender last night. I couldn't get in touch with him this morning. He had a doctor's visit and they called me when he didn't show."

"We'll take a ride over there and see what the story is. Don't worry." he touched her knee

Andy tried to prepare Sam for what they might find, what she had found on numerous occasions.

"Andy, I won't judge. We all have our demons. Your dad has had a rough couple of years. ...Still can't get him in a program, huh?"

Andy shook her head sadly as they approached her father's apartment door. Sam really felt bad for her. She was young and just starting out her career, her father just added another distraction. More distracting was the blood smears on the wall near his apartment door. They entered the apartment only to find Tommy passed out on the sofa, blood stains on his face and clothes.

"Dad, oh my God, what happened, are you okay?"

"I, um...I just woke up in my car in the alley a little while ago."

While Andy tried to uncover what happened to her father, Sam discovered a folder with surveillance photos and personal information of Calisiak. This couldn't be good.

Turns out Tommy had been watching Calisiak since he was paroled. He never really did the time he should have and Tommy knew all too well what he was capable of. Sam found Tommy's gun which had been fired recently. He saw the hurt in Andy's eyes and decided quickly the best way to approach. He locked up the gun and took the key. Told Tommy to hang up the bloody shirt and not to talk to anyone. Sam wanted to preserve any evidence but still give Tommy the benefit of the doubt. With the promise to figure everything out, Andy said good bye to her dad and they made their way out to the cruiser.

Sam could sense it, her full panic mode.

"What are we gonna do?" she asked

"Well, what we're not gonna do is jump to conclusions. All we know for sure is that your dad was drinking last night and tailing Calisiak." he said in his calmest voice

"And he fired his 38." Andy said wide eyed

"So we piece together his night. Figure out what really happened and go from there. Okay?" he grabbed her hand, "McNally, you and me, we'll figure this out."

She nodded as they headed to the bar where her father had been drinking last night. Upon interview, the owner remembered Tommy being there and getting into a fight with another patron. He chalked it up to being some girls angry father. Andy's hope of her father's innocence was waning away. All of a sudden her eyes got wide.

"What?"

"The beach! Whenever my dad get's like this he goes to theWest Beach past the breaking wall and fires off rounds. Sam, that has to be it."

Sam was leery but didn't dare let on to Andy. The investigation at the beach didn't lend itself to any evidence. Sure, there were plenty of shell casings but nothing that would prove that they were from the previous night. Sam explained to Andy how Tommy's actions had affected the strength of the Calisiak case. Now she understood why it was so important to her dad. He was trying to right a wrong. As Sam and Andy drove back to the barn, Andy begged Sam to check her dad's gun through ballistics. Sam was adamant.

"It's not just your dad I am protecting. You are a good cop but something like this will attach itself to you. No matter how good you are this will always surround you. I am not gonna let that happen to you. I love you and I care what happens to you. You're just starting out, you have your whole career in front of you, I am not gonna let this mess attach itself to you or even your father after all his years of service. Let's see what's going on with the case and then we'll figure out our next step."

Andy expelled a breath before turning wide eyed to face Sam. She felt her eyes welling up.

"Andy what?"

Quietly she asked, "Did you just say you love me?"

Sam pressed his lips together and rewound the conversation in his head. He knew he loved her but it had been a long time coming. He hadn't even realized that he had said it but it was the truth.

"Yeah, I guess I did..." he looked over to her as a tear started to slide down her cheek. "Andy, it's okay, it's not like I expect you to say it back. I really didn't mean to just blurt it out like that."

"Sam, it's just ...I mean we just started... I mean, you and I...we just got into this...not that I don't think... "

"Andy, I have been into this" he motioned between them, "crazy about you, since...forever. We don't have to discuss this now. I don't want to scare you away. I'm an idiot, that is not how I ever planned on saying that. I just wanted you to know that I am here for you and we will figure this mess out. Got it?"

She exhaled, "Okay."

"Let's head back to the barn and see what else they know." Sam said as he pulled away from the beach lot.

_Oh my God, he loves me. Yeah, my dad may be a murderer but Sam Swarek said he loves me. _She shook her head of these thoughts for a second and almost laughed out loud at the spectrum of emotions. She wasn't sure which thing frightened her more.

* * *

><p>As they walked toward the squad room, Andy tried calling but was unable to reach her father. She assumed he was just sleeping off his hangover. Luke approached them and asked about Tommy again.<p>

"No, Luke, sorry, he really doesn't remember too much." Almost on cue, she heard her father's voice. He had showered, grabbed some of his old case notes, and decided to come down to see if he could help. Andy sensed immediately that it seemed like he probably grabbed a fresh drink also. So much for not talking to anyone. Luke had interviewed Mrs. Calisiak but did not get anything from her. Sam offered to take her home while Andy and Luke went to work with Tommy. It was killing Sam to leave Andy with Callaghan but more prominent was his need to get to the bottom of this case and exonerate Andy's dad. _I hope._

It didn't take long for Luke to figure out that Tommy McNally had been drinking and definitely had motive to take this guy out. He brought Andy outside his office.

"Alright, let's get your father sobered up and get him a lawyer right now."

"I know, I should have never let him say anything. I mean both Sam and I said that he needed to just..."

"I'm sorry, you and Sam knew about this? I can only imagine, what else you haven't shared with me."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You and your best friend Swarek! How easily you can conspire together, how long has that been going on? What other secrets are you two privy to?"

"Luke, he was trying to protect me until..."

"Andy, I think it's best that you don't say anything else either." he stormed off.

She hung her head, only to hear her name being called.

"McNally!"

"Sam, Luke knows about my dad."

"He didn't do it."

"What?"

"Calisiak's wife just confessed to me."

Andy's eyes registered her surprise.

* * *

><p>Sam went to Luke to update him on his conversation with Mrs. Calisiak, who had been taken into custody. Andy decided to watch behind the glass as Luke questioned the wife and took her confession. Sam walked into the observation room holding a folder of photos.<p>

"Traffic cam on the Kingsway recorded your dad's car heading out to the West Beach around midnight then back again a few hours later."

"So he wasn't anywhere near the park when Calisiak was shot."

"No, you were right... So, you okay to take him home now?"

She nodded, tears starting to spill from her eyes for the second time that day. She grabbed his hand and pulled him to her to hug him. She pulled back to look into his eyes. "Thank you." The words were enough but it was the look in her eyes that showed how grateful she was. She kissed his cheek and then turned back to watch the confession unfold. Sam excused himself from the room.

* * *

><p>Andy collected her now sober father from the squad room in order to drive him home. Not a word was spoken until she parked the cruiser in front of his apartment building.<p>

"Andy, your haven't said a word since we left the barn, what's wrong?"

"Dad, I can't do this anymore. Clean up after you."

"Andy."

"No, I hate it, this sick feeling I get in the pit of my stomach every time the phone rings and I wonder, what the hell did he do now? I know I'm the only family you have, that's why I always take care of you. But today, ... today I was hoping that at best, the only thing you did was get blasted and go to the beach and fire you gun off. I had to try and prove that you weren't guilty of murder, how sick is that? Well, I'm done, I can't,...I won't do this anymore. You need to help yourself now and until you do, I can't have you in my life. I am done."

Tommy felt awful. His only daughter, his only child, his only family...hated him. As he watched the cruiser pull away from the curb he cried. She was right, something had to give.

Andy poured herself a drink. It had been an emotional day and she wanted to erase it completely from her memory. Well almost. She couldn't help thinking how great the day had started, snuggled in her bed with Sam. Sam who said he _loves_ her. In all the months, she had been with Luke, he had never said he loved her. She thought he did. She knew she cared about him, liked him a lot but had never used the love word with him. On the surface, he seemed like the perfect guy, just not the perfect guy for her. She dumped the alcohol down the drain, instead grabbed a pint of ice cream from the freezer and a spoon and headed for the sofa. Sam on the other hand knew he loved her. He was certain of it, and as frightening as the thought was, she knew that she loved him too. Not that she would say it right now but knowing it, realizing it, was almost comforting to her. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. She looked through the peephole to find her father standing there. She took a deep breath and opened the door.

"Dad, what are you doing here? I told you, I can't do this anymore."

"Andy, you are a wonderful daughter and you don't deserve to have me as a father. I 'm gonna be better. I know that you don't believe me right now, but I promise, I am going to be the family you deserve."

In his hand he held the lock box with his gun. He handed it to her.

"I want you to hold this for me. Until I straighten myself out, until I get well."

"Okay."

"There's an AA meeting at St. Thomas Church tonight and every night at 8. I called Danny Sullivan, my old partner, he's going to meet me there. His brother has agreed to be my sponsor...I was wondering if you would drive over there with me?"

Andy was quiet for a moment, contemplating what this all meant, when her cell phone rang. She saw it was Sam calling and excused herself for a minute to her bedroom.

"McNally, you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine, sorry I didn't get to see you when I came back from my dad's."

"No problem. Do you need anything? Do you want to grab a drink, coffee?"

"I'd love to Sam, but my dad is here. He's gonna try going to a meeting tonight, he asked me to take him. It's a step in the right direction. I dont know anything right now, but I know I have to do this for him."

"McNa...Andy, if you need anything, call me, I'm here."

"I know Sam,** that** I do know. Can I take a rain check on tonight? I would love to see you but I'm not sure how long I will be."

"Call me when you get home."

"Thanks Sam. For everything."

"No problem."

Andy drove her dad's car to the church. Danny Sullivan was waiting for them, as was his brother Kevin. Kevin was a retired cop also, who had his own alcohol problems but had been clean and sober for eight years. He promised Andy he would do everything he could to help her dad. With that, the men walked into the basement of the church.

She decided to call Traci to ask for a ride home. As she reached for her phone, she saw a familiar vehicle in the parking lot, the door opened and Sam got out.

"Sam! What a nice surprise seeing you here."

"Don't be surprised, I had dispatch track down every AA meeting within a 5 mile radius and took my chances."

"You didn't have to." she said as she wrapped her arms around his waist.

"I know. I just figured you've been dealing with this on your own for so long, might be nice for you to have some support."

She looked up into his eyes, "Darn it Sam. If you make me cry again..."she laughed


	10. Chapter 10 Day of Reckoning

**A/N: Hopefully you guys still love me. I know it has been long between updates. Still following the episodes, sort of, hope you enjoy this next segment. Have borrowed some lines they are the not my genius.**

**Chapter 10 Day of Reckoning**

Andy woke up thrilled at the thought of being cut loose….. For about a minute. It had been a long hard year. The academy was grueling enough but actually doing what they were taught was a whole other story. No amount of training or teaching could have prepared her for what she would experience on the streets. The past few months had been some for the record books. Arresting an undercover cop on her first shift, destroying his months of work, her disastrous prostitute imitation, poor Benny, her first shoot, making out with her training officer, her relationship with Luke, the trip to Sudbury, and most recently, her father as a potential murder suspect. It was almost too much to comprehend. Trying to be a glass is half full type of person, she made a mental list of the positives. Her dad was getting help, finally. She had an extended family, her rookie friends, the rest of the division, Sam….. Somehow everything led back to Sam. Sam who despite his cover being blown, gave her a lead for her first arrest. Sam who trained her and protected her, always. Sam who loved her even when she was with someone else. Sam, who she now knew she couldn't live without. Quite a revelation for Andy. Someone who spent most of her life not trusting people, keeping everyone at arm's length, and always waiting for the other shoe to drop. _Sam loves me. _She smiled and those three words alone were the motivation for her to jump out of bed and hit the shower.

* * *

><p>As Andy headed toward the locker room, she tried her dad's phone again. Where the heck was he? As she continued walking lost in thought she ran head on into Luke. "Uh, hey." She blurted out.<p>

"Yeah, hey."

"Luke, listen, I'm sorry about the other day. I shouldn't have withheld that information from you but I was in a panic and I didn't think that you would be objective considering what has gone on with us the past couple of months. I was just trying to get as much information as I could before it was all over the division."

"Don't worry about it McNally, Sam had your back, as usual." He said it more bitterly than he meant it but shut the door in her face all the same. Ok, so his ego was bruised but she was right. Things hadn't been right between them. He cared about her but obviously not enough to take him away from the job. As he sat solemnly at his desk, he hoped that one day he would find that someone that would make work come second, and despite his attitude toward Andy, he hoped that she would find what she was looking for also.

Andy stared at the door just slammed in her face_. Whatever_. She was done feeling guilty when it came to Luke. She didn't love him, he didn't love her. What was the point of rationalizing the fact that they weren't meant to be together? Luke would eventually catch on. She hoped sooner than later. As she spun around to continue to the locker room, she came face to face with Sam.

"McNally, it's a door, you knock and it opens." He smiled.

She gave him a half smile back.

"You okay?"

"Nothing a solid ten hours on the job can't fix."

"Yeah, be careful with that. Putting on the uniform to get away from your life, makes it harder and harder to take it off." He said with concern.

"Don't worry Sam" she smiled, "I have no problem taking it off." She said it only for his ears, his ears that were now on fire. She couldn't help the blush that was creeping up her own neck as she realized the forwardness of her statement.

She gave him a quick wink and ran to get changed.

* * *

><p>Hurricane Andy raced into parade as usual, her friends giving her a knowing smile. Best reminded them that after shift they would hear the results of their evaluations which would determine whether they would be cut loose or not. They were nervous, really nervous. It wasn't that they felt that they had done anything so severe that would warrant an extended probationary period, but then again, like every day on this job, you never know.<p>

Rookies were given their assignments. Sam was paired with Gail and Andy with Noelle. Andy was disappointed not to be paired up with Sam on her last tour. They had mostly ridden together over the past 6 months so she would have assumed that they would paired again on the day they would become full-fledged coppers.

Andy tried to hide what she was feeling. Sam knew exactly what she was thinking and hoped that the next ten hours would fly by and then they could make plans to see each other later.

Things had been great with Sam outside of work. He was kind and sweet and funny. The more time she spent with him, the more she fell in love with him. But that was for her to know and him to find out. Eventually.

* * *

><p>The night was fairly quiet for a Friday. Noelle commented to Andy the same.<p>

"Just thinking."

"McNally, I meant the streets."

"Oh. Yeah. ….Aren't you afraid to jinx us?"

"Listen rookie, you wear this uniform for enough time, you'll see, the calls come when they come."

Suddenly, the radio crackled to life, "1504, we have a report of a possible sudden death at 413 Beckett Street, witnesses are fleeing the scene, please respond."

Andy didn't say a word, just pursed her lips and looked over at the senior officer.

"My bad." Noelle said as she raced to the scene.

The residence was packed with college age kids. Most drunk and vomiting, others in stunned silence. A young woman was found dead on the patio after having fallen from the rooftop deck. Andy pulled an id from the girls pocket and handed it to Noelle. The name was Ashley Kennedy. Unfortunately, the license was definitely not that of the dead girl. The coroner had pronounced her dead and the Crime Investigation Bureau and the Detectives started to infiltrate the scene. Meanwhile uniformed officers tried to take statements from the other party guests. Andy tried to convince Noelle that they should go to the address on the license. There were plenty of other cops to help out. Reluctantly Noelle followed her rookie's lead.

* * *

><p>When they rang the doorbell at the residence, the spitting image on the license stood before them. This could not be good. They were invited inside and asked the young .woman if it was possible that someone had her license. She swore that it wasn't possible till she searched her purse and found it missing. She did mention that her younger sister had asked to borrow it a few days earlier but she had declined. Worse than this was that Noelle had found a picture of the deceased girl on the sofa table. Officer Williams asked the girl, Ashley, to get her mother. Andy felt like she was going to be sick. Noelle grabbed her by the shoulders and looked her in the eyes, "You are going to tell the mother."<p>

"No, no, ….I can't."

"McNally, unfortunately, this is part of the job. They discussed this with you in the academy. You know what to do, keep it short, don't drag it out."

"Can I help you officers?"

"Ms. Kennedy, could you please have a seat.?

"I don't need to sit down. Did something happen?"

"Your daughter, Julia, had an accident."

"Is she ok?"

"No ma'am,… I'm sorry, she's not… She's dead… We are so sorry."

The mother, a career soldier, remained stoic. Ashley broke down into hysterics. Andy did everything she could not to break down herself.

The mother tried to console her daughter, still showing very little emotion. The two officers left them for a few minutes to let the news register. Noelle would check in with the Detectives to see if any progress had been made. Andy could not believe that she was responsible for the pain they were experiencing, even if indirectly. Noelle snapped her out of her daze.

"McNally, we need to separate them. Find out all we can, who were her friends, any boyfriends, was she depressed?"

"Depressed? You think it was a suicide?"

"Not necessarily, but we can't rule anything out."

"Noelle, she wouldn't kill herself. I know it. I'm from the same kind of broken family, Julia wouldn't have done anything to hurt her mom."

"Okay….Just….see what you can find out. Take the sister."

Andy went to sit with Ashley. It was the usual story, she was well liked, lots of friends, good student but no serious boyfriend that she knew of.

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, Sam and Gail had uncovered the name of a possible boyfriend, Adam. They located him and brought him back to the precinct for questioning. It didn't take long for Sam to get the information he wanted from young, arrogant Adam. He quickly made a call to Noelle.<p>

Noelle hung up the phone and waved Andy over to her. "It just got worse"

Andy couldn't fathom how it could get any worse.

"That was Swarek,…..Julia was pregnant."

Andy could not possibly give this family more bad news. Noelle approached the family and in her softest tone informed the family of the latest development.

Ashley burst into tears and needing air, ran out the front door. Dana retreated to her downstairs office. Only a few minutes passed when Andy heard noises from downstairs. She quietly and cautiously made her way downstairs unsure of what she would find. She certainly was not prepared for what she saw. Dana was sitting at her desk, her service revolver in her hand.

"Oh my God, Dana no!"

"What kind of mother have I become?"

"Dana, don't move, let's talk about this."

"One minute you're sifting through body parts, the next your daughter is standing in your bedroom to say good night. How do you go from one to the next?"

"I don't know."

"And, there's a part of you that knows that you should open up to her because she needs you, but you can't, because if you crack that armor long enough to let her in, you will go back over there with it still cracked."

"I understand."

"You don't. How could you possibly understand? You just wait another ten years, you just wait till this job has ruined every relationship you've tried to have. You wait until one day some stranger knocks on your door and tells you your baby is dead, and the worst thing is you aren't even surprised, because everyone you have ever loved, every one you have ever gotten close to has turned to dust."

"This isn't your fault." Dana suddenly raised the gun to her temple. "No Dana, please don't do this."

Fortunately, Noelle came running in the room and diffused the situation. She grabbed the weapon and Andy handcuffed Dana for her safety.

Andy let out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding. If not for Noelle, she was sure that this would have ended poorly. It was a time like this when she couldn't imagine being on the streets alone.

* * *

><p>Noelle found McNally and ushered her to the Sgt. Best's office to find out about her evaluation. Andy stood before Frank's desk speechless. Frank was unaware of the various emotions that were making her brain spin. She was doing everything she could not to break down sobbing. Today had been extremely taxing and right now she couldn't care less about being cut loose. All she wanted was to go home and lie in her bed and have Sam hold her.<p>

"McNally?"

"Sorry sir."

"This is your rookie evaluation, your report card. This is an excellent evaluation. Your training officer thinks you are a good cop, one day he thinks you'll be a great cop. Let me take you through the categories, problem solving, report writing, uniform all excellent marks." He was smiling, Andy was not.

"McNally, you're not smiling."

"Sorry sir. No, I'm glad it's a good evaluation. It's just,…. tonight really scared the hell out of me."

"It should. You had a rough shift."

"It's not this one shift, it's every shift…. It's like it's all adding up, creeping up on me, and it finally took today to really see it."

"To see what?"

"The cost of doing this job." She begins to cry.

"Every bad call is like a ghost, and I know all too well what shoving those ghosts in a closet can do to a cop."

"You mean your old man?"

She nodded, "What if that happens to me?"

"Andy, the uniform does not make the cop. You the cop, make the uniform. There are as many ways to do this job as there are cops that do it." He sighed. "Give me your dad's shield. I understand that you are trying to honor your dad, but I think it's time to start fresh with your own badge number."

With that, he took her father's shield and placed it in a drawer. Andy actually felt a weight off of her shoulders. She loved her dad but it was time she started fresh. Being a cop, her way, she would build her career and her future on her own merits and in anticipation of the unknown, not in fear of repeating the mistakes of her father or anyone else for that matter. She was dismissed and made her way toward the locker room. On her way, she passed the trophy case. She looked at the pictures of herself and the other rookies. Each one brought a bigger smile to her face. Then it was like she found the missing puzzle piece. She had forgotten about this one picture. It was her and the other rookies, standing behind them were Sam, Oliver and Noelle. Sam had his hand on her shoulder and if she didn't know any better, a smile on his face. Just looking at him made her feel better. As she checked her watch, she realized it was time to go to the squad room. She ran upstairs to join her friends for the ceremony.

She raced in, fashionably late as always. Traci laughed as she joined her fellow rookies. It looked like that entire division had turned out. All she cared about was that Sam was there. It was all she could do not to grin at him. She really needed to hold herself together.

Frank called everyone to order.

"You've all been judged and you've been found…" he stood in front of each rookie as he uttered a word, "Capable, Resourceful, Loyal, Dedicated, and Courageous." The last word spoken as he stood in front of Andy. It was Sam's turn to hide his grin. He was so proud of her. She had learned so much and "girlfriend" or not, he would take her as his partner any day.

"So training officers , in the tradition of 15th Division, let's cut those ties."

Oliver cut the ties off Dov and Chris, Noelle cut Traci's. Sam quickly cut Gail's and finally stood face to face with Andy. Andy could feel his breath on her face and when he grabbed her tie she felt her whole body get warm. They shook hands and stayed joined probably a few seconds more than was warranted but neither seemed to care. Everyone hugged and offered congratulations and agreed to meet up at the Black Penny to celebrate. Everyone disbursed and quickly ran to the locker rooms to change.

* * *

><p>The rookies stood in their back corner of the bar. Playing darts, having a beer, trying not to be frightened to death that their dream of being cut loose had finally become a reality. Tracy hit her third bulls eye in a row, uttered a quick goodbye and was out the door. Sam, Noelle and Oliver sat at their table grinning at their students. The rookies would have liked to think it was because they were so proud of them. The TO's knew better. No more rookies. They toasted to being rid of their "appendages". Sam, maybe not so much. He and Andy worked well together and he really hoped that Frank would consider keeping them as a team. One could only hope. Gail walked past the TO table to the bar. Sam got up and went to the bar to join her.<p>

"Hey Peck, I promised you a drink, what's it gonna be?"

"Tequila!"

"Yeah, that's what I am talking about!"

As the bartender served them each a shot, they clinked glasses and it was bottoms up. Gail thanked Sam and got up to walk back to her friends, before she could he gently grabbed her arm.

"Got a second?"

"Sure, what's up?"

Sam hesitated,.He didn't normally get involved in the relationship mill but he almost felt like he needed to return the favor to Diaz after Chris' pep talk months before….."What's up with you and Diaz?"

"What do you mean ?" she smiled innocently

"I may look dumb Peck, but…."

"We're over. It's not gonna work out. Why do you ask?"

"He's a good guy. You need to give him a break."

"Yeah, he's too good. Gave up a fellow cop, when he should have just stayed out of it."

"Listen, it took a lot of guts to do what they did. Unfortunately, we weren't able to keep their names out of it but it was the right thing to do. Our job is to serve and protect and that's what he did. He was righting a wrong. Just because he got your brother's friend in trouble shouldn't matter, your brother made you choose a side, he should have kept out of it himself.…Chris loves you, he tried to do the right thing. I used to think that would be something a woman would look for in a guy but maybe not. What do I know?"

Gail knew he was right. She loved Chris, she just didn't know how to bridge the gap that had formed in their relationship. She had reacted poorly and honestly didn't know how to fix it.

"OK Sam. You've made your point. I'll talk to him."

"Good." He was facing Gail but his eyes were looking behind her.

"And Sam…something you **should** know…she's not your rookie anymore." She winked at him and gave a nod in Andy's direction. Sam looked back at his drink trying to hide the smile that was taking over his face.

Andy waited for Gail to walk away before she walked up to the bar. She stood next to him and ordered a round for her table. They made small talk till her order was up. She inconspicuously placed a bar napkin face down in front of Sam and placed a beer on top of it. A quick "See ya" and she made her way back to her friends. Sam couldn't help but watch her walk back,…. the whole way back. He took a swig of the beer and took the napkin off the bar. He flipped it over where only he could see it.

_**Drink up, you've got 5 minutes, I need to kiss you.**_

Sam almost spit the beer out at the guy sitting next to him.

Sam waited out the 5 minutes…well almost. He walked out to his truck scanning the parking lot for Andy. She was nowhere to be found. He got in his truck and went to put his key in the ignition when he smelled something, Andy's shampoo.

"I thought you changed your mind." He said looking into his rearview mirror.

"Not a chance Swarek." She giggled as she climbed into the front seat after checking that the coast was clear. She couldn't believe how giddy she got around him. _Get it together Andy. _

Immediately he grabbed her hand and squeezed it, "I missed you today."

"I missed you too" Suddenly the day's events came flooding back. " God Sam, It was an awful day….. that poor girl. I had to tell the family. That is the worst thing I have ever had to do."

He put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close to him. "Sorry I wasn't there for you today."

"Sam, you can't be there every time."

""I know but I want to be."

She rested her head on his shoulder. "Well, you're here now and that's all that matters."

* * *

><p>They went back to Sam's house. He grabbed a couple of beers and they made their way outside to start the grill. Sam stretched out on a lounger and pulled Andy to lay in his lap, her head leaning back against his chest. It was a clear, cool night but neither of them noticed as they lay snuggled together. The sound of Sam's stomach growling snapped them out of their bliss. They both laughed and went to the kitchen to grab burgers and corn to throw on the grill.<p>

Andy felt like she was at home, she felt so comfortable. As they ate, they talked about everything under the sun. Conversation with Sam was always interesting and never forced. She couldn't believe how smart he was, how funny he was, how freaking good looking he was. How the heck did she not see this? Stupid Andy, who was so worried about choosing Mr. Right, she never realized that he was RIGHT in front of her. As they washed and dried dishes side by side, Sam nudged her hip.

"By the way, Congratulations Andy."

"Huh?"

"Being cut loose?...You're not my rookie anymore. You don't need a training officer anymore. And" he grinned "We won't have to hide…..us anymore. I mean, I think that we should wait a little bit but I will leave it up to you if and when you want to say anything."

"I can't wait to be able to gawk at you in public, that will be awesome but you're right, we should wait a little bit." She smiled but suddenly got serious. Sam noticed the change immediately and wondered what was on her mind.

"What is it?"

"No training officer means that we might not get to partner together."

"Don't worry, Best knows we're really good as a team, he probably won't mess with that. If not we'll still see each other at work."

"But sir" she wedged herself between him and the counter and smiled seductively, "I still feel that there is so much more you can teach me. Besides, I told you, I need to kiss you."

_Oh boy._

**Thank you for reading. Pretty sure just one more chapter after this. With the new season having started, so many new ideas coming to mind. Great thanks to all who review and continue to story alert. **


	11. Chapter 11 Everything is as it should be

**A/N: Ok, so here is the final chapter. I have borrowed some lines of genius and altered others just to get the gist from the show. Edie/Andy and Gabe/Sam are the same people but I wrote them as which persona was speaking at the time. Hope that makes sense. I hope you have enjoyed the story. Thank you so much for the reviews and alerts. We all know how good it feels when someone appreciates our work.**

**Chapter 11 Everything is as it should be**

It had been 2 months since the rookies were cut loose. After a crazy beginning, things had started to settle down. Andy enjoyed working with her friends, but always looked forward to her shifts with Sam. They had known each other less than a year, yet he knew her better than she knew herself sometimes. Sam and Andy had continued to be quite private about their relationship. They thought they were hiding it pretty well and if anyone knew differently, they weren't saying a word. Sam met Andy outside the locker room on his way to parade and extended a coffee cup to her with a wink. Andy blushed. She didn't know how he did that to her with just a wink. Who was she kidding? He could walk in the room and her stomach would do flip flops. He had been busy with a case this week so their time together had been spread thin. They tried to maintain a professional relationship at work and they decided on no shop talk right now outside of work. Andy was aware of Dov and Gail's surveillance detail. They never hesitated to bring up the secret work they were doing. It was getting irritating. Chris and Andy were partnered for the day and headed out on patrol. They discussed their lack of being on the inside and tried to fluff it off but they would only admit it to themselves. They were jealous.

It was a half hour into patrol. The streets were quiet. Suddenly, Chris' cell phone was ringing.

"What? Edie, calm down, ….did you call Dov? ….Ok, I am on my way."

Chris explained that Edie was in trouble. Her ex-boyfriend was on her doorstep and would not leave. She called Chris because she didn't want Dov and the ex to get into a fight.

Andy flipped the lights on and they sped to Edie's house.

When they arrived at her house she was in a heated argument with the guy standing on her front step. Chris tried to talk to Edie, while Andy interviewed the suspect. Andy checked out the vehicle. In the back of the SUV was a duffle bag and a money counter. _Bingo. _Andy and Chris took the man, identified as Gabriel Lessing of Montréal, into custody.

They returned to the barn and began processing their prisoner when they were summoned to Best's office. Aside from Sarge, Shaw, Jerry and Noelle were also present. Andy was nervous all of a sudden and any previous delusions of a possible commendation from headquarters for this bust was quickly dispelled by the look on their Staff Sergeant's face. He asked them to give the details of the call and the subsequent arrest. They recounted the call from Edie, the arrival on the scene, the discovery of the money and counter and finally the arrest of Mr. Lessing.

Jerry was the first to speak, "Did you say Lessing?"

"Yeah." The silence was deafening. "Why does everyone look like we ran over the mayor?" joked Andy

"The less you say right now the better." Noelle whispered as Detective Boyd entered the room.

"That money was going to open the largest pipeline of heroin that Toronto has ever seen…" as he looked over at Andy with contempt, "and you two just blew it."

Andy felt that nauseous feeling again suddenly realizing that this was the big case that everyone had been working on.

Jerry attempted to figure out how this all shook out.

"We got the call for the disturbance, I saw the money in the car and it looked suspicious." Said Andy as Sam strolled in and propped himself on a desk.

"Do you know how many people are involved in this thing? How many people I could have taken off the streets? Bergin! The Landrys!...Hey Barber, how long we been working on this? 6 months, 6 months! Hey, that's longer than you've been on the force isn't it?" yelled Boyd

Sam interjected, "We can still salvage this thing, we still have Lessing."

Andy's defensiveness came out as she looked over at Boyd, "I understand why you would be angry Sir, but I really don't think I made a mistake."

Sam felt his own defensiveness coming out but pursed his lips and shut his mouth. Andy would be furious if he looked like he was protecting her, and it certainly wouldn't help this situation or make any friends with Boyd.

"Ya know, they guy **was** driving around with over two million dollars in cash and he had a hand gun, so….I think she did what any cop would have done." _Thank you Jerry._

Boyd continued to rant and rave. Finally, Sam had had enough. "Hey Boyd, you run your operation in the dark, people are gonna start bumping into each other. How did your team lose track of Lessing in the first place?"

"Lessing wasn't supposed to get in until Monday, how was I supposed to know that he was gonna come in 3 days early?"

"Well if you didn't know, how were Chris and I supposed to?"Andy interjected.

"Ya know what, I don't have time to sit here and explain every little detail to you newbies. I have to go explain to my bosses how you blew the bust of my career." With that Boyd stormed from the room.

* * *

><p>Sam ended up interviewing Gabe Lessing. In their brief conversation he was able to flip Gabe into giving up the details of the deal with Bergin's men. Gabe gave full disclosure in a trade for witness protection. The highlight of the interview was when they group realized that Bergin's men had never met Gabe. Immediately Sam's wheels started turning. They used Gabe's phone and got in touch with Angel, who was the point man for Bergin's crew. They renegotiated the meet claiming that Gabe had gotten in town early and wanted to get the deal done. When they questioned his early arrival, quick thinking Andy brought up the fact that Gabe was in town to see his girlfriend, Edie.<p>

A half hour later Sam, Andy, Jerry and Boyd met up in the squad room. It was decided that Sam would go under cover as Gabe and make the buy. Jerry was leery of Sam going under by himself. They figured that an undercover female officer could go under as Gabe's girlfriend. Boyd promised to look into grabbing someone up from UC. Suddenly Andy chimed in.

"I'll do it."

"No thanks." Said Boyd

"Come on, what do I have to do, pretend to be his girlfriend?" Andy was open to smacking herself if she began to smile.

"Sammy, do you think she can do it?" _Definitely._

"Yeah, I do."

And that was that. They would meet up in one hour, 7pm, for the deal that was to take place at 9pm.

Andy went to the locker room to put on an appropriate outfit and hopefully get her head together.

_Andy, you can do this... you are going undercover as the girlfriend of a drug dealer, who was really Sam, who was her real boyfriend, sort of, kind of, that no one actually knew about. Yikes._

She sat down on the bench in front of her locker and felt her heart start to palpitate. Sam walked in and his presence hardly helped her condition. She really wanted to just hug him so he could stop her from shaking. Instead he sat down next to her and held her hand.

"McNally, you okay?"

"Yeah, fine, good, great."

"Talk to me."

She hesitated, "I sucked at the last undercover, what makes me think I can do this?"

"Andy, you'll do fine. I'm not too disappointed that you were an awful prostitute. I am **hoping** that it will be a little easier to act like my girlfriend." He laughed.

"No, I know….. it's just that this time it's different. Your life is in my hands. What if I screw up? I can't have anything happen to you. I would never recover from that."

Sam's heart skipped a beat at her admission. He was starting to pray that his own hands weren't shaking. He pulled her up to stand next to him in front of the mirror making any attempt to distract her. She was supposed to be Edie, the girlfriend…yes. The exotic dancer, not sure. "Let's take a look at you Edie….Not bad, but you don't exactly scream cheap thrills."

"What are you talking about? I can look way cheap." She smiled as she tugged her shirt down to reveal more cleavage.

He blushed, "Okay, okay….let's get our stories straight. We've been together a couple of years. How did we meet?"

"Uh, well…. We met at the club. We have been dating a few years."

"How did you feel about me, did you like me right away?"

"Yes!"

"Huh? Yes, you understand?"

"Yes, I liked you right away." She admitted shyly.

"Really?" he smiled and caught himself gazing into those brown eyes which were not leaving his either. "Oh boy, we are getting off track here." He grabbed her by her shoulders and used the most reassuring voice he could find.

"Andy, try to stay calm but have a story prepared and go with it. Try to stay as close to the truth as possible. It's harder to remember the details of something you lie about…..are you ready for this?"

"Let's go."

They met in the squad room to discuss particulars before they headed to the Mermaid Lounge, which was the site of the buy. Noelle, Boyd and Callaghan were the first back up team and various others would be in the surrounding areas.

Sam and Andy jumped in Gabe's SUV and headed to their destination. Andy was very quiet. Sam parked in front of the bar and unhooked his seatbelt as he turned to face tried to loosen the mood and give her a little pep talk.

"Andy, honey, listen to me….you are ready for this. I have been working with you for the last six months, I have seen how far you've come and there is no one I would rather go in there with, than you. I promise. You are gonna be great. You trust me right?"

"With my life."

"Good, because I trust you, to have my back, always. I know we promised to try to be professional while on the job but I just have to tell you that whatever happens,…. I love you…... and I really need to kiss you right now."

Andy laughed and leaned in for a kiss. It was short and sweet and before they knew it, lights flashed from behind them as their backup turned the corner and pulled across the street. Sam and Andy quickly jumped away from each other and out of the car. Sam grabbed the money bag and wrapped his arm around Andy before they disappeared inside the club.

The Mermaid Lounge was never exactly a hot spot but apparently was under renovations. Bergin owned the building and the police were sure that it was a great front for the many illegal activites Bergin was involved in, to take place. They were immediately met by Angel, real name, Simon Torrence and his young sidekick Ricky. Gabe was immediately patted down and relieved of his gun. In all fairness, Simon made Ricky lay his on the table also._ How nice, honor among thieves. _Angel apologized for having to pat down Edie but Andy hardly believed he was sorry. She felt the glare from her partner as Angel's hands and eyes worked their way down her body.

"Beautiful girl, you're a lucky guy Gabe."

"Don't I know it." Sam gave Andy a wink

"How did you get mixed up with Gabe here?" Angel questioned

"I'm a dancer over at Tassies. A couple of years ago Gabe walked in, Mr. Big shot that he is, working a deal and I was a goner. Everyone tried to warn me that he was trouble but when you find the right one, the one who just gets you, ya know, right?"

"I guess with some people you just do." Angel admitted as he went over to the table to count the money in Gabe's duffle bag. Andy was hoping her story sounded believable, Sam was hoping she wasn't pretending.

"So Angel, I see you, I see Ricky but no sign of Henry Bergin?"

"Well, like you said on the phone Gabe, there's been a change of plans.

Gabe and Edie exchanged glances.

"So Angel, where's my stuff?"

"It's not here."

"What? First no Bergin and now you don't have my product?"

"Relax Gabe, it's all good. I'll take the money and I will be back in twenty minutes with the narcotics."

"No way. Forget it, we're out of here."

"Ok. I guess the Landrys are okay with you blowing a two million dollar deal, they must really like you."

"What they like is their money and what they won't like is me letting it walk out the door with someone I've never met and I've got nothing in my hands." He zipped the bag closed and was ready to walk out. Suddenly, Andy to the rescue.

"How about this? Money stays here, Gabe watches over it, with him." She nodded to Ricky. "You take me to the dope, deals good, I call Gabe and he lets Ricky take the money. Done."

Angel hesitated for a second, "You got a smart girl."

"She has her moments." Sam wanted to strangle Andy right now putting herself in harm's way.

"Well as pretty as she is, I think I'd rather have you come with me." Angel admitted

"Yeah, I think so too." _Thank God._

Gabe walked over to Edie and held her face in his hands. Andy whispered "This was my idea you don't have to do this."

"Don't worry about me, you be smart. See you in a bit." He gave her a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes.

Andy noticed it and realized she was seeing something in Sam's eyes that she rarely saw from him, doubt. She put her hands on his waist and looked right into his eyes. "I love you,… truly." And then she kissed him. A searing kiss that hopefully told him everything that she hadn't told him before. Yes, she loved him, would do anything for him and she was so grateful to have him in her life. Most importantly she wanted this whole op to be over with so she could be Andy, he could be Sam and they could just be together and she didn't care who knew it.

Sam was slightly startled by her admission and the smile on his face didn't just represent his enjoyment of that kiss. All he could think was, _Please don't be acting._

As Gabe started to follow Angel out of the club, Edie spoke up, "Hey Angel, look, this is my man, and I'm not letting him leave here without his gun."

"Now that's a girl you can count on." He motioned to Ricky to hand Gabe his gun. And then they were gone.

* * *

><p>Andy sat and had a silent conversation with herself. She was thankful that Ricky was standing across the room or he may have noticed her heart pulsating out of her chest. She tried to make light conversation with him to pass the time. They had only left minutes ago and yet it seemed like an eternity. Ricky looked young, seemed young and Andy could tell that this was probably his first big job. People were counting on him, he was inexperienced, and fidgeting with nervousness. <em>Welcome to the club.<em>

Edie and Ricky got into what would constitute a pissing match of I know more than you do. Unfortunately, Ricky would win this round. He admitted that he had picked up Landry at the airport just this morning. Andy hoped that Ricky couldn't read the extreme panic in her eyes as she realized that Landry knew Gabe and the second they saw Sam, he was dead. With no real plan in mind, she jumped up from her chair and headed for the door.

"Hey, you can't leave…..that wasn't part of the deal." He raised the gun to aim at her.

"I'm leaving. So either shoot me or let me walk out."

"Don't make me shoot you, I don't want to but I will."

"Let me tell you something Ricky, you are in the middle of the worst day of your life and it is only gonna get worse for you if you continue to point that gun at a cop."

"You're a cop?" he was sweating buckets now.

"Yeah. Right now I am gonna try to save my partner because the second your boss sees that he is not Gabe, they are gonna kill him."

He continued to point the gun but Andy didn't see it. All she saw was Sam's face in her head. She had to get to him, she wouldn't be able to live with herself if something happened to him.

She ran out of the club down the street toward her backup. Luke, Boyd and Noelle jumped out of the car as soon as they saw her. They had seen Sam leave with Angel and were trusting that McNally knew what she was doing. Sam had given the signal that everything was still a go. Everything was on track….. until they saw her… running, in high heel boots like she was a track star. Something was definitely wrong.

They jumped out of the car and ran to her.

"You've got to stop Sam's car. As soon as he gets to Bergin, he's made, they're gonna kill him." She jumped into Boyd's vehicle, as Noelle advised backup at the warehouse where Sam was. Over the scanner they heard shots being fired and complete bedlam. The words "undercover officer is in the building" and "gunshot wound to the chest" were the only things reverberating through her mind the short distance to Bergin's warehouse. Luke kept glancing back at her, sincere caring in his eyes. He tried to calm her, "he'll be okay, Sam knows what he's doing." She appeared calm on the surface but one look in her eyes told the whole story. Luke was a bit shaken that this op had seriously turned for the worst, never did he want one of his brethren in trouble, but more upsetting was McNally's state of being. He had never seen her like this, so upset, and then it hit him. She was in love with Sam. He silently prayed that the night would turn out okay, even if not for the bust, but for her and Sam's sake anyway.

Boyd pulled their SUV into the warehouse parking lot. Andy practically jumped out while it was still moving. She walked hurriedly toward the loading dock, then she saw it….a body covered with a yellow tarp. _Oh God No, please not him. _She was frozen in place. She couldn't bear to get any closer. Boyd flipped up the tarp and it was Angel's body that was uncovered. Suddenly she felt a hand on her arm, she jumped only to see Luke. "You had his back, Andy." He nodded in the direction of Oliver's squad car with a safe Sam leaning against it. The sight of Sam in one piece, smiling at her, lit her up like a Christmas tree.

"Andy?" Luke called as she walked toward Sam.

"Yeah Luke?" she looked over her shoulder

"You should tell him."

"Huh?"

"Tell him you love him."

"Oh….I don't understand, how did you know?"

"All I know, is that you never looked at me the way you look at him." He hung his head and walked in the direction of Boyd.

Shaw and Noelle were heading for the squad car but saw Andy approaching, and, giving them some privacy went to make themselves scarce.

She took a deep breath and tried her hardest not to cry the tears that were forming in her eyes. "You're okay."

"Thanks to you. You were great in there."

"Thanks." she hesitated for a second "Listen... about that…you know… I meant it. All of it. I love you Sam. I'm sorry that it took me so long to realize it,… to tell you. At first I was afraid to jeopardize our jobs, so that was what I hid behind. It didn't take long before I couldn't get you out of my head but by then I was so afraid of what I felt. Everything about you scared me…and now,…..tonight, the **only** thing that scared me was the thought of not being able to be with you, always."

The tears that had threatened were flowing freely now. Sam said nothing but wiped the tears from her cheeks, his eyes never leaving hers. "I'm sorry, did you just say you love me?" He smirked.

Andy wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled his face to hers. "Yep. I did….now shut up." Immediately their lips met, she kissed him furiously as if she couldn't get enough, and quite frankly, she didn't think she could. As their tongues dueled for dominance and their bodies melted into each other, neither noticed the small group approaching them.

"Oh, I know you aren't leaning on my car." Shaw called to them, a huge grin on his face.

They pulled away from the car but not from each other, a slight blush on both their faces.

"About time you two got on the same page." Noelle said and winked over at Shaw.

"Same page? I wasn't sure they were reading the same book." He yelled back.

As Jerry, Nash, and Epstein prepared to take their turns at the mocking, Sam put his hand up, "Guys, I just woke up in the best dream of my life and you guys are definitely not in it."

**The End.**

**A/N: Thank you all for reading, reviewing and alerting. I love getting those fan fiction messages in my inbox. Appreciative for all of the support.**

**Lisa**


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